Lucifers Hero

Not quite the forgotten man but it seems he has put his year out to good use. Also sounds like he is raring to go next year http://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/2017-08-11/vandenberg-sets-his-sights-on-2018 As he is out of contract this year I would not be surprised to see him re-contracted before too long. I'm sure it will be a popular re-signing.

Surprised to see Maynard out given the wrap he got from Goodwin and Matthews this week. I/C: Angus Brayshaw, Sam Weideman, Josh Wagner, James Harmes Emg: Jack Watts, Billy Stretch, Corey Maynard In: Brayshaw, Hannan, Weideman, Wagner Out: Salem, Frost, Watts, Maynard

The strategy has been found out: the opp mids do not always try to get win the clearances. They simply gang tackle our player at the stoppage and spill the ball out or get a free kick. Result is we don't get the chance to get it out to someone on the outside or we have a frenzied kick forward. Meanwhile, our two behind the ball are fast running forward and can't turn around fast enough to defend against their mids who have hung back for the receive once the ball spills free or the free kick is granted. The surprise value of the tactic has worn off. As rpfc has said it is too easily defended. We persist with it at our peril. It will not stand up in finals.

Choked on reading this!!!! If that is true they have no understanding of what finals means to supporters after so long in the wilderness and ridicule. We have a chance this year. Lets take it! And the impact on the rest of the club: memberships, sponsors, prime TV slots, fixture benefits, merchandising etc etc. ?

Captain, perhaps you can enlighten us without giving away sources etc.

A poster in the match preview thread noted he has a disc problem and has played injured. Also"It is understood Watts has been limited by a hand injury, with the 26-year-old spotted with a small cast to protect his hand at training in recent weeks". http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-08-11/late-mail-live-round-21 And, he had back spasms, ankle problems leading up to the bye. Then his hamstring went and he was out for 4 weeks. I would like to think he was fully fit when he came back it looks like the selectors became desperate and brought him back underdone.

Nice theory. The problem is our mids can't get it in there cleanly! And, we have the worst scoring shots/i50 in the league and last week was abysmal. The ball just ricochets out. Its been a problem for a few months and I can't see how bringing in Weid or just leaving our Watts will fix that overnight. The fix has to be around the game plan! Look forward to seeing the final team tonight and seeing what ideas the coaches have to fix our lack of scoring problem. It may be MFCSS but I fear the coaches have run out of ideas and playing with deckchairs.

Agree. We could add Petracca's: - GWS: 3 kicks, 13 handballs. DE% 43.8. 1 tackle. - NM: 2 kicks, 15 handballs. DE% 76.5. 1 tackle Our forward line looks woeful! If Jack is injured I want the club to say that and not just 'omit' him and leave him out on a limb to become a target for all his haters. Ditto for Salem. I get it if Watts/Salem are rested but I don't see the logic of them finding form at Casey. Conventional wisdom is that clubs use the last 3 to 5 rounds before finals settling their team. We are turning our team upside down. Don't like it!

If Watts is out then Weideman is in. Our forward line starts looking very inexperienced/B grade with the exception of Garlett. Our two silkiest players, Salem and Watts would be out and I don't see many clean users on the extended bench. Anyone looking at those omissions and our makeshift forward line would think we were tanking rather than playing to make finals!

Melbourne team: round 21 B: Michael Hibberd, Oscar McDonald, Neville Jetta HB: Bernie Vince, Cam Pedersen, Jayden Hunt C: Nathan Jones, Clayton Oliver, Jordan Lewis HF: Christian Petracca, Tom McDonald, Jake Melksham F: Jeff Garlett, Mitch Hannan, Alex Neal-Bullen Foll: Max Gawn, Dom Tyson, Jack Viney I/C (from): Jack Watts, Angus Brayshaw, Billy Stretch, Sam Weideman, Josh Wagner, James Harmes, Corey Maynard In: Brayshaw, Stretch, Hannan, Weideman, Wagner Out: Salem, Frost Not surprised to see Salem out as he was injured last week. Frost has been struggling. Our forward line is looking decidedly short unless both Watts and Weideman come in... Will be interesting to see who gets dropped from the bench.

I'm not sure that fills me with confidence at all. Most of those playing well at Casey have been tried at AFL this year and found to be wanting. I don't see much in-form talent waiting in the wings (except Hannan to come back and Gus if he is ready). And tbh unless the 'outs' are the likes of Gawn, Oliver, Hibberd, Jetta then given the way we have been playing no 'outs' would shock me! I just hope they aren't simply shuffling the deck chairs!

Agree, if he is played down back. (Unless he comes in to cover an injured Salem) A different story if he is played as a high half forward or the wing. In his first year he showed a bit of speed down the wing and kicked a few goals from well inside 50. He also knew where to perfectly place a kick for Jeffy to get out the back. He can find space and generally makes good decisions. Gus may not be the best in the league on those 5 attributes but he offers more of them than our army of inside mids. Not saying he will do all those in his first game back. But we really need someone with those skills. You are right, ideally he would spend more time at Casey. It was always going to be Gus' call and I doubt the club would play him without involving his parents as the club have ensured that they are involved in each step of Gus' recovery. I doubt the club nor his parents would take any chances with him.

Gus's dad (Mark) was interviewed on SEN this morning. His comments: Gus' recovery took longer than he (Mark) thought it would Gus's mum is thrilled he is wearing a helmet. Cheekily added that Gus says (paraphrasing): he is wearing it just to please his mum. Gus is in the frame to pay sooner rather than later. Garry then said Dees' fans would lover to see him play on Sunday. Mark did not give much away. Its good to hear his mum is happy about the helmet as earlier in the year Mark said she was quite distressed about the head knocks. If a helmet helps Gus's frame of mind, be it confidence or not worrying his mum, then great. Don't be surprised if he is selected tonight! It will be great to see Gus on the G again. It may take a few games to get into the swing of it but its great to know he would be ready for finals, if we get there...

Apparently the Crows were quoted as saying we had been the hardest team they had played after our earlier win this season. So could the Crows let Ess win this weak to make it really hard for us to make finals? Its happened before! I agree, Lewis is primed. He will try and drag the team over the line if he has to - the rest just need to do their bit; all 21 of them. For those who hadn't noticed one of the coaches gave him 2 votes last week...I reckon it was Goodwin. Lewis is coming good when it counts and now doing what he was recruited to do

Such rumours are the last thing we need when on the cusp of making finals, especially if the players have heard them! Could easily be a morale killer inside and outside the club!

But is the talk of 'shopping' him around, as per your earlier post? Or is it he has requested a trade to go home after a horrendous year which has finally decided for him where he wants to live. And that the club has agreed to facilitate that? A big difference between 'shopping' him around and responding to a request. And maybe there is nothing in it because the various journos and others are quoting King after he 'philosophised' on SEN on a Hogan/lever trade! It was a completely fictitious proposition by King!

Are you referring to the spot around the 21 min mark where they said a club is shopping their star forward around because of issues with the head coach? No mention was made of names. Was the discussion you allude to about Hogan somewhere else in the recording? If its a rumour it probably started in the DL Jake Lever thread when someone suggested him as a trade. The last thing Jesse needs is to be the talk of the town again! I cannot imagine the club trading Hogan under any circumstances let alone being seen to 'dump' him after his horrendous year. Edit: If the podcast did not mention Jesse, then his name should not be mentioned as it only feeds the 'fake story'. It could be any number of clubs. Bulldogs-Boyd. Pies-Moore. StK-McCartin.

If that is true it makes young Jake a liar - he denied it on air in Adelaide. The most practical time to have 'met' was in Darwin. Maybe a casual beer with mates (eg Petracca) after the game in someone's hotel and the likes of Goodwin and Viney walk in and say 'hi' and have a 'get to know chat'. Maybe that is a 'meeting' to a journo but not a 'meeting' to young Jake. For now I'll give him the benefit of the doubt as after Scully I detest blatant liars.

Worth repeating!

Where were all you Watts critics when Jack ran and ran to make position at the G then ran his heart out to kick that amazing goal under huge pressure to win the QB game for us. Still a spine tingling moment. He was playing injured long before he was ousted by a hamstring injury. Remember the back spasms, remember the ankle injury. He probably is still playing injured. Many of our players are down, particularly forwards: look at Garland, Petracca, Tom Mc since the bye. I'm over the Watts bashing. Go pick on some else!

Motlop is a RFA so there is not need to trade. The Cats seem happy to let him go - he has under performed for several years.

Updated version of article: http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-08-08/it-never-happened-crow-lever-denies-meeting-dees From original article: IN-DEMAND Adelaide star Jake Lever has denied reports he met with Melbourne officials. "I never met with Melbourne," Lever told radio station FIVEaa on Tuesday. "That's a rumour I just laugh at. "It never happened." I do not detect any spin, hedging or camouflage in Lever's comments. And, he doesn't seem the type to outright lie. He isn't coming to the Demons. Sad that he laughs at the rumour/prospect of coming to our beloved Demons. I hope that isn't typical of the players we may be targetting. Edit: the updated article gives a slightly different angle on what he said. He seems will entrenched in Adelaide with a weekly radio spot.

If GCS have been paying attention at Richmond's progress this year they would go for Blake Caracella. His ball movement program is a major reason for their turnaround. He has coached 3 years at the pies, 6 at the Cats, and 1 at the tigers. Is a Premiership player. Knows what is need to win finals as a player and a coach. There are few assistants around that have his breadth of coaching experience. Wish we had nabbed him last year rather than the Tigers.

Maybe. But that does not account for the gap in their performance and ours. My view of Richmond's success with injuries/young players tiring, is they have players with the accurate skills to play a fast flowing game which we don't. This is less physically demanding on their young players. Our game plan is based around crash and bash. They have also been smarter - we have lost almost as many games of our hardened players from suspension as we have to injury. Our suspensions are as much to blame for the pressure on the younger kids as the injuries. That was entirely in our control. Poor discipline and leadership. Tigers have both in spades. Rich have had injuries to their ruckman and #1 forward and managed to win (as we did). All in all I just can't agree that injuries and the resultant tiring of young players account for the significant difference in performance by the two teams.

I 'Like' * 1000!! All the stakeholders you mention only care about wins and number of members! That is the big problem if we don't make finals. They will say, yes Demons are improving but others are improving more or faster. All those people on here wanting to stop Home NT games, have fewer 6 day breaks, have no 'suburban' ovals etc just don't get it. If we don't win more games/make finals Jackson will have very little leverage on the fixture etc. A lot of our best players come out of contract next year. Other teams will be circling. They will wonder whether it is worth staying at the Dees... The chances of getting an elite player will be lowered. Peter Jackson set goals of finals in 2016 and winning one in 2017. We can still achieve the latter. Jackson will be tearing his hair out if we don't make finals. If we miss finals people can come with all sorts of feel good platitudes (injuries, youth, experience, 6 day breaks etc etc) but the truth is finals are critical to our future.