Spirit of the Demon

Jeff White wore the number 34 at Melbourne. The number 34 has been vacant for twelve months and was not allocated to anyone else this week.

Going for Harvey and Bo.

None of them Melbourne. Good sign.

Not just a full review but one carried out by someone from a different universe to ensure complete transparency.

One thing that I’m gobsmacked about is the way some people on here make comments like this while they are completely oblivious to the process involved in the club securing a home base. That process has been extensively covered in material issued by the club and also in media articles. Essentially, the move to secure a site within the Caulfield Racetrack is a work in progress that is undergoing examination and consultation and the final decision is outside the hands of the MFC Board. To suggest that the fact that Kate Roffey has yet to deliver this option or any other within a given timeframe and is therefore somehow a failure is risible and reflects a lot of the warped thinking that’s enveloped our club over the past months. I find this very sad.

Good on you Kate. I hope your legacy will be the flag and the new headquarters and training ground at Caulfield which will be announced soon!

AFLW: Kate Hore says Demons are looking for a little bit of redemption' against Cats in Round 1 by Blair Burns [Herald Sun - August 26, 2024] A straight-sets exit from the finals was not the way Melbourne planned to finish the 2023 AFLW season but the new-look side will use it as an added incentive to make amends this season. After finishing second on the ladder, the Demons were defeated by North Melbourne (41 points) and Geelong (five points) - two sides they had comfortably beaten during the season. Melbourne captain Kate Hore said her side, which has been bolstered by recruits, was seeking redemption in its round 1 battle against the Cats. "The way we finished last year wasn't ideal for us (but) what happened last year doesn't really change anything for us, nobody likes losing," she said. "We get to play the Cats in the first game, so we're definitely hoping for a little bit of redemption. "We've taken a lot of lessons out of how the season ended and hopefully we can use those going forward this year" The Demons new-look side has generated a lot of excitement as they've added plenty of versatility into the side through new players. "We've got nine new players which is almost a third of our list so it's a little bit of a different look for us," Hore said. "We've bought in a few young kids which has been cool to see and they've slotted seamlessly into our program." Among their new inclusions was prized No. 5 draft pick Alyssia Pisano, a player who the skipper was expecting to " turn a few heads". "She's just a real natural footballer and has played the game since she was a kid ... she's definitely one to watch," Hore said. "Another one is Ryleigh Wotherspoon who grew up a cricketer and soccer player ... she's had an instant impact (in practice matches) kicking a couple of goals. "Grace Beasley was a college basketballer and spent six years in the States ... she adds heaps of power and speed to our midfield." Hore kicked 20 goals last year to win the league goalkicking and the captains' votes have predicted the same outcome this season, but the spearhead will take on a slightly different role. "T've been playing a bit more midfield time, learning a new position has been a new challenge," she said. "I tried to build up my aerobic base and overall endurance over the off-season and have really enjoyed working with our midfield group. "I think versatility is a real strength of our team, a few girls will go through different positions depending on what the game requires." The Demons undoubtedly have the toughest fixture across the first month as they take on preliminary finalists Geelong (round 1), followed by grand finalists Brisbane (round 2) and North Melbourne (round 3).

Yes - we should have played K. Brown and AMW who are more our future than some who were gifted games last night.

6. Tom McDonald 5. Max Gawn 4. Kade Chandler 3. Kysaiah Pickett 2. Jack Billings 1. Trent Rivers

Good luck to Nibbler on his last game as a Demon. You'll always be welcomed back at the G and forever a Melbourne premiership player.

And what's the correct way to spell Kozzy. Is it that or Kozzie or Kossie?

The Herald Sun has found a new player at GWS Giants called Tony Bedford. :)

6. Clayton Oliver 5. Alex Neal-Bullen 4. Kysaiah Pickett 3. Bayley Fritsch 2. Max Gawn 1. Christian Petracca

6 Jake Lever 5 Max Gawn 4 Daniel Turner 3 Steven May 2 Ed Langdon 1 Clayton Oliver

6 Max Gawn 5 Kade Chandler 4 Jack Viney 3 Trent Rivers 2 Ed Langdon 1 Tom McDonald

6 Hanks 5 McNamara 4 Hore 3 Pearce 2 Gay 1 Paxman

Met a mate at the races who knows the Jefferson family well. Family has been running the Jefferson Ford car sales business for about 40 years. They are big supporters of Collegians in the VAFA where the father was a top player. Matthew has been a leading junior footballer both at school (Wesley College) and with Ashburton in the Yarra Valley Junior Football League (he was in their interleague side with Elijah Tsatas and Ollie Sestan) and various representative sides from Oakleigh Chargers to Vic Metro in the National Championships. Reckons he needs 12 months in the AFL system and he’ll be a gun.

The comperes and producers are responsible for what goes out to air and it needed nothing more that for one of the comperes to say that John’s comments were neither acceptable or funny. And being in control throughout means they can comment after the segment as well. I understand that people have complained to the station and no action to date has been taken. The offending audio was still on their site this morning. Something should be done by the station and by the comperes sooner rather than later..

I have a feeling that our two rookie picks are going to do real well.

I don't quite understand why we have three picks left. We only have two vacancies on our list of which Kade Chandler's upgrade will take up pick 73. Pick 38 will be used tonight and that should be it.

Has Setterfield of Carlton been delisted?

Nice big article in today's Herald Sun on Mac Andrew. Read it in a cafe - no link.

What the highlighted part means is that even if we made it into the finals in 2020 and even if we beat the Saints in the elimination final, our semi final opponents would have been either Richmond or Geelong and they were both far too hot for us at that stage of the proceedings. We’ll never know for sure but I don’t feel we were quite ready.

Take nothing for granted! Looking at some recent post premiership disappointments, there was Hawthorn who surprised Geelong in 2008 to take the flag with a young side. Everyone raved about how good they were going to be but they crashed in 2009 and finished ninth with 9 wins 13 losses and a percentage of 92.5. The Bulldogs crashed their way through the 2016 finals and started 2017 well enough before messing up the second half of their season and finishing 10th with 11½ wins 10½ losses and a percentage of 97.1. Before that the 1993 Baby Bombers crashed to 10th in 1994 after everyone predicted a long dynasty ahead of them. They all struggled after breaking through to win flags with youthful teams that were expected to kick on. I think in every case, they celebrated too long and too hard and took it for granted that they would do it again the next year but lost their hunger.

Yes, lots of us sat through crap performances, yet missed out on being there in person on our day of redemption on September 25, 2021. Trusting that this will be the driver to see the club through to another one in 12 months time at the G.