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The Casey Demons made a successful return to the playing field with a 51 point away from home victory over the Box Hill Hawks. The visitors were starting over after a hiatus of almost 20 months and fielded a strong team of 14 AFL listed players against an undermanned opponent. And they showed from the first bounce that they were out to make up for lost time with an aggressive opening that saw them off to 21 point lead at the first break with thanks to a dominant midfield and two key forwards in Ben Brown and Sam Weideman with livewire small forward Toby Bedford abuzz at their feet. The Demons continued at this elevated level through the second term piling on another five goals with Aaron vandenBerg and Joel Smith standing out and Weideman putting on a clinic in front of goal. The half time lead of 33 points was doubled to 66 by the final break with Weideman’s goal tally going to five on the way to seven. They eased off in the last and conceded five goals to the Hawks (to three of their own) but it was pretty much a day of total dominance by the Demons. Bedford was quieter after half time but Kade Chandler took over the role of the team’s brilliant small man and finished with 24 touches. Neville Jetta showed that he is by no means cooked collecting 25 possessions. Defender Jay Lockhart was also busy and workmanlike underlining the club’s depth in a variety of positions. Young supplemental lister Deakyn Smith also showed promise in his first game after being recruited just over a month ago. Jake Bowey and Fraser Rosman are young draftees who also look to be future prospects. Big men Majak Daw and Aaron Bradtke were overshadowed in the ruck. The main dampener for Casey was that Joel Smith who was coming off some long stints on the sidelines and was playing strongly, appeared to have suffered a nasty knee injury in the latter part of the game. Casey’s old stagers Jimmy Munro, Mitch White and Jack Hutchins all worked hard for the victory while young players in Luca Goonan, George Grey and last minute replacement Ryan Sparkes who slotted through a nice goal and looks a likely prospect at this level. The Demons have a tough challenge for their second match of the season with an encounter against Richmond at the Swinburne Centre in Punt Road as a virtual curtain raiser to the Anzac Eve blockbuster later in the evening. With a 16 game roster and 22 teams, every post has to be a winner. 2021 VFL Mens Casey Demons 5.3.33 10.10.70 14.15.99 17.16 118 Box Hill Hawks 2.0.12 4.3.27 5.3.33 10.7.67 Goals Casey Demons Weideman 7 Brown 3 Bedford Rosman 2 Chandler Sparkes vandenBerg Box Hill Hawks Jeka Greene Mascitti 3 Brooksby Best Casey Demons Weideman Chandler Lockhart Bedford vandenBerg D Smith Box Hill Hawks Newcombe Hartley Mascitti Maginness Porter Statistics Oskar Baker 5 kicks 2 handballs 7 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 32 dream team points Toby Bedford 2 goals 10 kicks 5 handballs 15 disposals 1 mark 7 tackles 79 dream team points Jake Bowey 16 kicks 6 handballs 22 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 76 dream team points Aaron Bradtke 2 behinds 5 kicks 5 handballs 10 disposals 2 marks 8 hit outs 36 dream team points Ben Brown 3 goals 1 behind 14 kicks 4 handballs 18 disposals 6 marks 1 hit out 90 dream team points Kade Chandler 1 goal 2 behinds 14 kicks 10 handballs 24 disposals 10 marks 3 tackles 112 dream team points Majak Daw 6 kicks 6 handballs 12 disposals 1 mark 2 tackles 23 hit outs 62 dream team points Zac Foot 8 kicks 5 handballs13 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 48 dream team points Tom Freeman 10 kicks 3 handballs 13 disposals 6 marks 54 dream team points Luca Goonan 1 behind 10 kicks 7 handballs 17 disposals 6 marks 3 tackles 72 dream team points George Grey 1 behind 6 kicks 6 handballs 12 disposals 4 marks 3 tackles 53 dream team points Jack Hutchins 5 kicks 3 handballs 8 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 35 dream team points Neville Jetta 1 behind 19 kicks 6 handballs 25 disposals 7 marks 5 tackles 113 dream team points Jay Lockhart 20 kicks 3 handballs 23 disposals 9 marks 2 tackles 99 dream team points James Munro 6 kicks 8 handballs 14 disposals 3 marks 8 tackles 74 dream team points Fraser Rosman 2 goals 8 kicks 8 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 49 dream team points Deakyn Smith 14 kicks 5 handballs 19 disposals 7 marks 4 tackles 78 dream team points Joel Smith 11 kicks 7 handballs 18 disposals 5 marks 62 dream team points Ryan Sparkes 1 goal 1 behind 10 kicks 6 handballs 16 disposals 4 marks 2 tackles 69 dream team points Aaron vandenBerg 1 goal 16 kicks 9 handballs 25 disposals 7 marks 5 tackles 113 dream team points Sam Weideman 7 goals 2 behinds 12 kicks 4 handballs 16 disposals 7 marks 2 hit outs 110 dream team points Mitch White 2 behinds 12 kicks 4 handballs 16 disposals 8 marks 5 tackles 91 dream team points

The Casey Demons started the 2019 in unimpressive fashion with a 62 point loss to the Box Hill Hawks at Box Hill City Oval. It was a total contrast to their 2018 opening when they monstered the Coburg Lions but the circumstances were entirely different. Twelve months ago, the Demons were able to go into the match with a large contingent of AFL listed players while yesterday, they went into the game with 12 Melbourne players, mostly inexperienced. They were also hampered by the AFL schedule which sees the Demons facing the Swans up in Sydney on Thursday night, a factor which most surely saw the withdrawal of ruckman Braydon Preuss from the Box Hill game and others being lightly used throughout the afternoon. Whilst its no excuse for the poor performances of some of the others, to this observer, it took away from the team’s competitive ability against a side they beat by 10 points in a practice game as recently as 24 March. Box Hill was out of the blocks quickly and dominated the opening quarter. Tim Smith has the kicking yips early and impressive small man Kade Chandler kicked the only goal as the home side took a 23 point lead into quarter time. After the break and reinforced by the introduction of Billy Stretch and Marty Hore, Casey fared a lot better. Smith finally hit the target and the busy Chandler scored his second at the 17 minute mark to provide a ray of light with the deficit under two goals but, after that, the afternoon turned into a nightmare. Box Hill dominated the error riddled visitors for the next quarter and a half, going into the main break with a five goal lead and stretching that past nine goals at the final break. Casey rallied a little in the final term but their inaccuracy in front of goal ensured that they would make little impact on the final margin. Best players for the Demons was Corey Maynard who put his hand up for senior selection with 27 disposals, likewise Billy Stretch with 20 touches in his three quarters. New skipper Mitch White tried hard against the odds on a difficult day for his team. For the Casey Demons, it was a game best forgotten as they head back home for an encounter against North Melbourne next Saturday. 2019 Hard Yakka / Totally Workwear VFL Casey Demons 1.4.10 3.6.24 3.10.28 4.18.42 Box Hill Hawks 5.3.33 8.6.54 14.11.95 15.14.104 Goals Casey Demons Chandler 2 Gent T Smith Box Hill Hawks Ross 5 Lewis 4 Kilpatrick Schoenmakers 2 Hanrahan Moore Best Casey Demons Maynard Stretch Chandler White Munro Bedford Box Hill Hawks Kilpatrick Lewis Ross O'Brien Jiath Miles Statistics Oskar Baker 1 behind 5 kicks 4 handballs 9 disposals 2 marks 30 dream team points Toby Bedford 1 behind 5 kicks 9 handballs 14 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 50 dream team points Kade Chandler 2 goals 1 behinds 10 kicks 7 handballs 17 disposals 4 marks 2 tackles 77 dream team points Dylan Collis 1 behinds 5 kicks 3 handballs 8 disposals 4 marks 2 tackles 30 dream team points Will Collis 5 kicks 3 handballs 8 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 56 dream team points Jeffrey Garlett 1 behind 4 kicks 3 handballs 7 disposals 2 mark 3 tackles 28 dream team points Mitch Gent 1 goal 2 behinds 10 kicks 4 handballs 14 disposals 4. marks 1 tackle 63 dream team points Marty Hore 13 kicks 1 handballs 14 disposals 3 marks 53 dream team points Jack Hutchins 1 kicks 2 handballs 3 disposals 1 tackles 8 dream team points James Jordon 8 kicks 2 handballs 10 disposals 1 mark 2 tackles 39 dream team points Declan Keilty 3 kicks 6 handballs 9 disposals 3 marks 3 tackles 9 hit outs 48 dream team points Mitchell Lewis 8 kicks 6 handballs 14 disposals 3 marks 36 dream team points Corey Maynard 10 kicks 17 handballs 27 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 82 dream team points James Munro 2 behinds 8 kicks 6 handballs 14 disposals 1 marks 3 tackles 48 dream team points Harrison Petty 4 kicks 2 handballs 6 disposals 4 marks 2 tackles 33 dream team points Aidan Quigley 8 kicks 3 handballs 11 disposals 5 marks 43 dream team points Tim Smith 1 goal 3 behinds 11 kick s 1 handball 12 disposals 1 mark 2 tackles 53 dream team points Tom Sparrow 5 kicks 6 handballs 11 disposals 3 marks 4 tackles 49dream team points Billy Stretch 13 kicks 7 handballs 20 disposals 2 marks 5 tackles 77 dream team points Cory Stockdale 8 kicks 2 handballs 10 disposals 1 mark 3 tackles 40 dream team points Luke Tynan 1 behind 7 kicks 9 handballs 16 disposals 4 marks 49 dream team points Liam Wale-Buxton 3 kicks 3 handballs 6 disposals 1 mark 2 tackles 17 hit outs 40 dream team points Mitchell White 1 behind 12 kicks 12 disposals 5 marks 2 tackles 60 dream team points

In boxing parlance you would describe the Scorpions' win over the Hawks in the last hit out for the season before the finals as a "slugfest". From the very beginning of the bout, the opponents traded heavy blows with first one, then the other seemingly on top. After all, this was a fight between the heavyweight champion of recent times in the VFL and the new contender. The Box Hill Hawks are on their way down, the Casey Scorpions are on the rise with their eyes on the championship belt. A win would go along way to securing a title bout but for the Hawks, it was their last chance to go out fighting. And so, at the City Oval on a cool, windy afternoon, the Hillmen did come out slugging and they landed the early blows. They were ahead on points early (4-0) before scoring goals through the agency of AFL premiership players Matt Spangher and Will Langford. When the bell rang to close off the first quarter, the visitors were goalless and in fact were smarting, having kicked only one goal in their last three quarters of football after their poor finish last week. Five minutes into the second term, Box Hill now kicking against the breeze, scored another goal to go to a handy 16 point lead. It was up to big hitter Cam Pedersen to stop the bleeding and in short time, he landed two heavy blows to narrow the margin to four points before Dean Terlich put them in front. Viv Michie landed another before the half time bell and the Scorpions were 9 points in front. It was lively rover Ben Kennedy who came to the fore and extended the points lead to 14 but the Hawks refused to be beaten. They picked themselves up and got off the canvas swinging wildly but hitting the mark, kicking the next four goals and reversing the Casey lead to go into the final round with a 9 point lead. The time had come for the Scorpions to step up. Kennedy scored first but the home side hit back with another from Langford. The sparring continued and big man Jake Spencer scored the next blow and the Scorps kept coming - a rushed behind leveling the scores at 55 apiece. Jack Grimes put them in front by a point. Kennedy who along with Alex Neal-Bullen had been the outstanding small man in the ring on the ground, kicked his third goal and a flurry of minor scores ensued before Cam Pedersen landed the killer blow at the 17 minute mark. Box Hill were down on the ropes - there was no coming back. Dean Terlich added injury to insult, the lead was out to 25 points and, with the news of Collingwood's loss to Footscray, the Scorpions were heading to the top of the ladder. When Clayton Oliver who was one of the stars of the day (finishing with a game high 33 disposals) marked and passed off to Michie for his second, the Hawks' fans were calling in the referee to stop the fight and call a technical knock out. The season was over for them. But it will continue next week for Casey which just keeps on punching. They have a strong list of AFL listed players qualified and on this display, you would expect them to win a final for the first time since the alignment began with Melbourne. Casey listed players like Angus Scott and skipper Jack Hutchins add to the side's quality. They have a good enough mix of experience and youth to go all the way and claim the VFL's heavyweight crown. Casey Scorpions 0.4.4 4.7.31 5.10.40 11.20.86 Box Hill Hawks 2.4.16 3.4.22 7.7.49 8.8.56 Goals Casey Scorpions Kennedy Pedersen 3 Michie Terlich 2 Spencer Box Hill Hawks Langford 3 Hardwick Spangher 2 Stewart Best Casey Scorpions Michie Kennedy Neal-Bullen Dunn Grimes Oliver Box Hill Hawks Howe Langford Mirra Willsmore Spangher O'Donnell Statistics Lynden Dunn 14 disposals 12 kicks 2 handballs 6 marks 1 tackles 62 dream team points Colin Garland 22 disposals 16 kicks 6 handballs 6 marks 6 tackles 75 dream team points Jack Grimes 2 behinds 28 disposals 16 kicks 12 handballs 8 marks 5 tackles 119 dream team points Liam Hulett 5 disposals 3 kicks 2 handballs 2 marks 2 tackles 27 dream team points Ben Kennedy 3 goals 3 behinds disposals 17 kicks 6 handballs 8 marks 7 tackles 131 dream team points Jay Kennedy-Harris 1 behind 21 disposals 11 kicks 10 handballs 6 marks 2 tackles 77 dream team points Viv Michie 2 goals 1 behind 31 disposals 21 kicks 10 handballs 8 marks 2 tackles 128 dream team points Alex Neal-Bullen 32 disposals 14 kicks 18 handballs 4 marks 4 tackles 106 dream team points Clayton Oliver 33 disposals 13 kicks 20 handballs 4 marks 4 hit outs dream 89 team points Cam Pedersen 3 goals 1 behind 15 disposals 10 kicks 5 handballs 6 marks 2 tackles 3 hit outs 87 dream team points Joel Smith 13 disposals 4 kicks 9 handballs 2 marks 2 tackles 41 dream team points Jake Spencer 1 goal 7 disposals 4 kicks 3 handballs 3 marks 3 tackles 23 hit outs 70 dream team points Dean Terlich 2 goals 2 behinds 14 disposals 9 kicks 5 handballs 3 marks 3 tackles 1 hit out 83 dream team points Josh Wagner 21 disposals 12 kicks 9 handballs 3 tackles 63 dream team points Mitch White 1 behind 23 disposals 12 kicks 11 handballs 7 marks 1 tackles 84 dream team points The late season winning run of the Scorpions Development League team came to an end in the top-of-the-ladder clash against Box Hill who won by 20 points. Casey retained second position going into the finals and will be looking forward to the rematch. Casey Scorpions 2.1.13 5.2.32 6.4.40 9.6.60 Box Hill Hawks 4.5 5.9.39 9.13.67 11.14.80 Goals Casey Scorpions Freeman Max King 2 Baker D Collis Fritsch Wilson Wyatt Box Hill Hawks Lawlor 3 Firns Walker 2 Glass Lewis Summers Traynor Best Casey Scorpions Jaffer-Williams Wilson D Collis Briggs Wyatt Beacom Box Hill Hawks Brolic Lawlor Walker Kidd Summers Fisher