Search the Community

This was a weekend of history with Anzac Day commemorations throughout the community including the sporting world including the VFL. For the Casey Demons, which originated from the Springvale Football Club founded in 1903, it was a double celebration as Saturday’s game was a celebration of the club’s 750th VFA/VFL match since admission to the competition in 1982. Springvale became the Casey Scorpions in 2005 when the club moved to Casey Fields and since 2017 has been known as the Casey Demons in line with its AFL affiliate. This is how the modern version of an old club found itself braving wild and woolly conditions at the old Punt Road Oval (now known as the Swinburne Centre) on the afternoon of Anzac Day Eve. The Casey Demons were taking on the reigning VFL premier (from 2019) Richmond, in a game that was expected to be tight and close all day and it certainly looked like it was going to turn out that way in the early going when the home side did most of the early attacking and kicked the first goal . However, after ten minutes the Demons steadied. Ben Brown booted their first and a steady stream of goals came. Thereafter, it was never really a contest and by the end of the game, Brown had increased his tally of goals to four and fellow key forward Sam Weideman had booted three to add to their claims for promotion into an AFL side that’s proving most difficult to break into. Between them, the pair took 13 marks despite the conditions which made marking difficult. A three goal lead at quarter time was turned with ease into 33 points at the main break and, despite the wet conditions, Casey’s dominance was maintained throughout the game. It was an even team performance led in the ruck by Majak Daw who was recruited in March to bolster Melbourne’s ruck and key forward stocks. Their first draft selection Jake Bowey, playing his second game was also outstanding with 26 touches and Oskar Baker was busy on a wing with 24 disposals. Neville Jetta showed that his career is not yet over. He showed his experience in marshalling the defence and was exceptional with his work rate in the conditions. Of the team’s VFL listed players, veteran Jimmy Munro had a day out with ten tackles to go with his 21 touches while former Sydney Swan impressed with a solid performance that included a handy goal when the going was tough in the opening quarter. It was a comprehensive victory to the Casey Demons who broke a 10 game Richmond winning streak that stretched back to the middle of 2019. The game highlighted the Melbourne Football Club’s depth this season with only dampener being an apparent shoulder injury to Harry Petty. Casey sits in second spot behind Footscray in a not dissimilar formation to the AFL. It’s next game is on Thursday night in a televised Foxtel game against cellar dwellers North Melbourne under cover at Marvel Stadium. 2021 VFL Mens Casey Demons 5.4.34 8.8.56 11.14.80 13.18.96 Richmond VFL 2.4.16 3.5.23 4.5.29 5.7.37 Goals Casey Demons Brown 4 Weideman 3 White 2 Bradtke Foot MacHaya Munro Richmond VFL Chol 2 Coleman-Jones Ryan Stack Best Casey Demons Daw Bowey Munro Foot Brown Baker Richmond VFL Coleman-Jones Naish Stack Martyn Chol Collier-Dawkins Statistics Riley Baldi 4 kicks 2 handballs 6 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 31 dream team points Oskar Baker 1 behind 18 kicks 6 handballs 24 disposals 5 marks 2 tackles 90 dream team points Toby Bedford 3 behinds 12 kicks 7 handballs 19 disposals 5 marks 6 tackles 94 dream team points Jake Bowey 14 kicks 12 handballs 26 disposals 5 marks 81 dream team points Aaron Bradtke 1 goal 5 kicks 3 handballs 8 disposals 1 mark 1 tackle 8 hit outs 43 dream team points Ben Brown 4 goals 2 behinds 10 kicks 2 handballs 12 disposals 5 marks 3 tackles 2 hit outs 87 dream team points Majak Daw 3 behinds 13 kicks 5 handballs 18 disposals 7 marks 6 tackles 32 hit outs 126 dream team points Zac Foot 1 goal 13 kicks 7 handballs 20 disposals 5 marks 3 tackles 85 dream team points Tom Freeman 7 kicks 1 handballs 8 disposals 4 marks 1 tackle 41 dream team points George Grey 10 kicks 3 handballs 13 disposals 5 marks 5 tackles 71 dream team points Jack Hutchins 1 behind 7 kicks 2 handballs 9 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 38 dream team points Neville Jetta 16 kicks 7 handballs 23 disposals 6 marks 80 dream team points Tom McCaffrey 13 kicks 2 handballs 15 disposals 8 marks 68 dream team points Cory Machaya 1 goal 8 kicks 2 handballs 10 disposals 3 marks 44 dream team points James Munro 1 goal 1 behind 12 kicks 9 handballs 21 disposals 2 marks 10 tackles 107 dream team points Harrison Petty 8 kicks 1 handball 9 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 40 dream team points Fraser Rosman 4 kicks 3 handballs 7 disposals 1 mark 21 dream team points Deakyn Smith 7 kicks 8 handballs 15 disposals 2 marks 1 tackle 49 dream team points Ryan Sparkes 7 kicks 5 handballs 12 disposals 2 marks 5 tackles 54 dream team points Tom Sparrow 1 behind 11 kicks 7 handballs 18 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 62 dream team points Sam Weideman 3 goals 2 behinds 9 kicks 4 handballs 13 disposals 8 marks 1 tackle 82 dream team points Mitch White 2 goals 1 behind 13 kicks 6 handballs 19 disposals 3 marks 1 tackle 79 dream team points

A young and undermanned Casey Demons were sent out on Saturday to the Swinburne Centre in the shadows of the MCG on a man’s errand against a very experienced Richmond VFL combination which is the clear ladder leader and fielded no less than 18 AFL listed players. It was expected to be a rout and the Tigers made easy work of it in the early stages when they held a 26 point lead by quarter time. To their credit however, the Demons weathered the storm and kept their opponents within the range of that margin until a late run of goals saw them lose by a margin of 35 points in the end. Richmond’s accuracy when kicking for goal probably made that margin somewhat flattering. Given that the Demons had only nine MFC listers (including Category B rookie Austin Bradtke who is only finding his feet after spending several years as a basketballer) and lost Jimmy Munro who has been in exceptional form to a rib injury before half time, it was a far better display than anyone could reasonably have expected. With half a dozen in the side having played no more than a handful of games at this level, the Casey side stuck to the plan and defended well against the odds. The man who held the defence together in outstanding fashion was former Magpie VFL player Marty Hore who collected 34 touches and spent the afternoon harassing the opposition and intercepting many of their scoring attempts, a particularly courageous display in light of the fact that less than a month ago he suffered a broken collarbone on the MCG. He certainly thrust his name before the Melbourne selectors for a return to that venue in a week’s time against the Magpies. Another returning Demon who shone out was Billy Stretch who has been bedeviled by foot injuries over the past twelve months. He provided great drive on one wing but unfortunately, the cupboard was mostly bare and bereft of key forward talent and this was the team’s ultimate downfall Although slightly beaten on the day by Richmond’s 2017 premiership ruckman Toby Nankervis, Casey’s big man Liam Wale-Buxton battled manfully and picked up 31 hit outs in a great tussle against the Tiger who is coming back from injury and is expected to return to the senior Richmond side before the finals. Former skipper Jack Hutchins had his best game for a while and 19-year-old Nick Lowden was impressive with two goals, one of which was a great snap from the boundary. With just two games left for the season, Casey is unlikely to contest the finals but will be keen to finish the season on a winning note. 2019 Hard Yakka / Totally Workwear VFL Casey Demons 1.1.7 3.3.21 4.6.30 6.7.43 Richmond VFL 5.3.33 7.4.46 8.5.53 12.6.78 Goals Casey Demons Lowden 2 Bedford Lockhart Munro White Richmond VFL Aarts Markov Menadue Miller 2 Coleman-Jones Grewar Nankervis Pickett Best Casey Demons Hutchins Keilty Hore White Stretch Wale-Buxton Richmond VFL Aarts Morris Coleman-Jones Nankervis Naish Eggmolesse-Smith Statistics Toby Bedford 1 goal 7 kicks 4 handballs 11 disposals 4 marks 4 tackles 62 dream team points Austin Bradtke 1 behind 2 kicks 3 handballs 5 disposals14 dream team points Jaxon Briggs 11 kicks 3 handballs 14 disposals 7 marks 2 tackles 69 dream team points Kade Chandler 5 kicks 8 handballs 13 disposals 1 mark 3 tackles 45 dream team points Dylan Collis 6 kicks 4 handballs 10 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 40 dream team points Joe Di Pasquale 2 behinds 13 kicks 2 handballs 15 disposals 6 marks 1 tackle 70 dream team points Tom Freeman 9 kicks 3 handballs 12 disposals 2 marks 40 dream team points Matt Gahan 4 kicks 4 handballs 8 disposals 2 marks 1 tackle 31 dream team points Marty Hore 30 kicks 4 handballs 34 disposals 6 marks 5 tackles 133 dream team points Jack Hutchins 3 behinds 15 kicks 5 handballs 20 disposals 9 marks 5 tackles 106 dream team points James Jordon 2 kicks 12 handballs 14 disposals 2 marks 6 tackles 58 dream team points Declan Keilty 2 kicks 6 handballs 8 disposals 1 mark 1 tackle 22 dream team points Mykelty Lefau 2 kicks 2 disposals 2 tackles 12 dream team points Jay Lockhart 1 goal 12 kicks 2 handballs 14 disposals 3 marks 6 tackles 81 dream team points Nick Lowden 2 goals 9 kicks 4 handballs 13 disposals 8 marks 72 dream team points Ariek Lual 4 kicks 4 handballs 8 disposals 4 marks 32 dream team points James Munro 1 goal 6 kicks 5 handballs 11 disposals 3 marks 5 tackles 64 dream team points Cory Stockdale 9 kicks 5 handballs 14 disposals 5 marks 52 dream team points Billy Stretch 16 kicks 7 handballs 23 disposals 2 marks 3 tackles 79 dream team points Luke Tynan 9 kicks 6 handballs 15 disposals 2 marks 4 tackles 63 dream team points Josh Wagner 13 kicks 5 handballs 18 disposals 5 marks 7 tackles 95 dream team points Liam Wale-Buxton 5 kicks 1 handballs 6 disposals 1 mark 7 tackles 31 hit outs 78 dream team points Mitch White 1 goal - details unavailable

The Casey Demons went down by the narrowest of margins to a strong Richmond VFL combination in the Round 4 game at Casey Fields on Saturday after a rushed behind to the Tigers in the game’s dying moments broke the deadlock. In a low scoring game, Casey took the early ascendency after conceding the first goal and held their lead for most of the first half going into the sheds at the main break with an 8 point lead. The Demons were led in defence by key position players, Oscar McDonald and youngster Harry Petty who often relieved the Tigers’ pressure with strong marking and bold movements out of the backline. They were well backed up by Josh Wagner. Recruit ruckman Liam Wale-Buxton had a terrific duel with Richmond’s AFL-listed Ivan Soldo in just his third game at VFL level and, although just shaded by his Tiger counterpart in the ruck duels, he contested strongly and kicked two vital goals. He was well supported by Declan Keilty who provided a hand out in the ruck and added two goals himself, including one from a screamer of a mark. Another youngster who impressed was midfielder Tom Sparrow who was hard at the ball and tackled strongly all day. The downfall for the Demons was their poor opening to the second half when they leaked four unanswered goals in the first ten minutes or so and were kept under a tight rein for the remainder of the third term. The fight back in the final quarter was led by former skipper Jack Hutchins who struck a purple patch and kicked the goal to level the game at the 23 minute mark. He was aided and abetted by experienced VFL-listers in Mitch Gent and current captain Mitch White and while the team had their chances, they fell agonisingly short in the end. The Demons face another hard task next week against Footscray VFL and will need to work hard given the number of injuries the club is experiencing at AFL level. 2019 Hard Yakka / Totally Workwear VFL Casey Scorpions 3.0.18 4.1.25 4.2.26 8.3.51 Richmond VFL 1.0.6 2.5.17 6.8.44 7.10.52 Goals Casey Demons Keilty Wale-Buxton White 2 Chandler Hutchins Richmond VFL Chol 2 Aarts Bolton Butler Moore Townsend Best Casey Demons Wale-Buxton White Hutchins McDonald J Wagner C Wagner Richmond VFL Bolton Collier-Dawkins Morris Townsend Menadue Naish Statistics Oskar Baker 10 kicks 4 handballs 14 disposals 2 marks 6 tackles 68 dream team points Toby Bedford 2 kicks 2 handballs 4 disposals 2 tackles dream 13 team points Jaxon Briggs 4 kicks 3 handballs 7disposals 3 marks 1 tackles 31 dream team points Kade Chandler 1 goal 1 behind 7 kicks 6 handballs 13 disposals 1 mark 2 tackles 50 dream team points Jake Di Pasquale 2 kicks 2 handballs 4 disposals 1 marks 14 dream team points Tom Freeman 6 kicks 8 handballs 14 disposals 1 mark 4 tackles 54 dream team points Mitch Gent 10 kicks 12 handballs 22 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 63 dream team points Jack Hutchins 1 goal 6 kicks 1 handballs 7 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 40 dream team points James Jordon 6 kicks 5 handballs 11 disposals 5 marks 2 tackles 51 dream team points Declan Keilty 2 goals 6 kicks 4 handballs 10 disposals 6 marks 3 tackles 6 hit outs 75 dream team points Mitchell Lewis 3 kicks 5 handballs 8 disposals 2 marks 3 tackles 37 dream team points Tom McCaffrey 2 kicks 1 handballs 3 disposals 1 mark 5 dream team points Oscar McDonald 17 kicks 5 handballs 22 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 73 dream team points James Munro 10 kicks 9 handballs 19 disposals 2 marks 11 tackles 94 dream team points Harrison Petty 6 kicks 4 handballs 10 disposals 5 marks 3 tackles 53 dream team points Aidan Quigley 6 kicks 6 handballs 12 disposals 2 marks 3 tackles 48 dream team points Charlie Spargo 9 kicks 4 handballs 13 disposals 2 marks 3 tackles 57 dream team points Tom Sparrow 13 kicks 5 handballs 18 disposals 2 marks 12 tackles 100 dream team points Luke Tynan 3 kicks 2 handballs 5 disposals 3 marks 1 tackles 23 dream team points Corey Wagner 13 kicks 7 handballs 20 disposals 2 marks 6 tackles 77 dream team points Josh Wagner 12 kicks 8 handballs 20 disposals 5 marks 4 tackles 85 dream team points Liam Wale-Buxton 2 goals 10 kicks 4 handballs 14 disposals 5 marks 5 tackles 31 hit outs 117 dream team points Mitchell White 2 goals 11 kicks 3 handballs 14 disposals 7 marks 1 tackle 1 hit out 77 dream team points

At the 15 minute mark of Sunday’s game at the Swinburne Centre against Richmond VFL, the Casey Demons led by 5.1.31 to 0.1.1. By the time the first quarter had come to an end more than 20 minutes later, the lead had been reduced to a mere 11 points and that came on top of a goal on the siren by Lachlan Filipovic. At some time during those last 20 minutes, the Demons had hit the wall because, by the end of the day, they had channelled their senior counterparts from their last game and fell by 35 points. The result came as no surprise in light of the changes to the team’s make up in the fortnight since its barnstorming opening round 107 point win over Coburg. Back then, there were 18 MFC listed players in the line up with many of them fighting desperately for a place in a Melbourne team that had just beaten North Melbourne for the first time in 18 encounters. Against the Tigers, there were just 12 AFL-listed players in the team with Harley Balic, Jayden Hunt, Joel Smith, Tim Smith, Billy Stretch and Sam Weideman out from the previous week. The problem was compounded by an injury to Tomas Bugg after he landed awkwardly in a marking contest during the second quarter. The Demons were already a man down after 23rd player Mitch Lewis was concussed early in the game. To make matters worse, the bulk of the Demon listers had poor games and many were unsighted after the first break. The exceptions to the rule were Cam Pedersen who continued where he left off in the second half against Werribee and youngster Charlie Spargo who was busy all day and kicked two goals. Pedersen marked strongly and worked hard supporting an otherwise well beaten big man division and his five goals for the day kept the Demons in the hunt until the final quarter. Jay Kennedy Harris, Mitch Hannan and Oskar Baker had their moments but the rest of the AFL brigade were disappointing. The Demons were well served by their VFL listed players. James Munro and mature aged newcomer Ryan Morrison attacked the ball aggressively, Mitch Gent was solid. Casey plays its first game at home on Saturday night when it takes on another VFL stand alone, Geelong. Peter Jackson VFL 2018 Casey Demons 8.2.50 9.5.59 11.6.72 13.8.86 Richmond VFL 6.3.39 12.8.80 13.14.92 17.19.121 Goals Casey Demons Pedersen 5 Spargo 2 Baker Filipovic Hannan Kennedy Harris Lockhart Scott Richmond VFL Coleman-Jones 3 Baker Bolton Chol Grewar 2 Aarts Balta Drummond Ellis Moore Stengle Best Casey Demons Morrison Munro Pedersen Spargo Kennedy-Harris Gent Richmond VFL Miles Markov Moore Morris Soldo Coleman-Jones Statistics Oskar Baker 1 goal 2 behinds 11 kicks 3 handballs 14 disposals 4 marks 80 dream team points Jaxon Briggs 7 kicks 3 handballs 10 disposals 5 marks 1 tackle 43 dream team points Tomas Bugg 5 handballs 5 disposals 1 mark 3 tackles 25 dream team points Dylan Collis 5 kicks 5 handballs 10 disposals 1 mark 26 dream team points Lachlan Filipovic 1 goal 2 kicks 5 handballs 7 disposals 1 marks 2 tackles 6 hit outs 41 dream team points Mitchell Gent 14 kicks 6 handballs 20 disposals 1 mark 3 tackles 69 dream team points Mitchell Hannan 1 goal 1 behind 15 kicks 4 handballs 19 disposals 6 marks 6 tackles 104 dream team points Dion Johnstone 5 kicks 4 handballs 9 disposals 5 tackles 40 dream team points Declan Keilty 1 kick 2 handballs 3 disposals 1 tackles 11 dream team points Jay Kennedy Harris 1 goal 1 behind 12 kicks 5 handballs 17 disposals 3 marks 7 tackles 89 dream team points Mitch King 2 kicks 7 handballs 9 disposals 2 marks 1 tackle 9 hit outs 33 dream team points Mitchell Lewis no stats (concussed early in the game) Jay Lockhart 1 goal 7 kicks 4 handballs 11 disposals 6 tackles 53 dream team points Corey Maynard 6 kicks 11 handballs 17 disposals 5 tackles 51 dream team points Ryan Morrison 13 kicks 1 handballs 14 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 55 dream team points James Munro 9 kicks 19 handballs 28 disposals 1 mark 10 tackles 104 dream team points Cameron Pedersen 5 goals 2 behinds 12 kicks 6 handballs 18 disposals 10 marks 5 tackles 129 dream team points Harrison Petty 4 kicks 1 handballs 5 disposals 3 marks 2 tackles 28 dream team points Angus Scott 1 goal 6 kicks 6 handballs 12 disposals 1 mark 1 tackle 41 dream team points Charles Spargo 2 goals 1 behind 9 kicks 9 handballs 18 disposals 3 marks 3 tackles 80 dream team points William Stephenson 1 behind 4 kicks 3 handballs 7 disposals 1 mark 4 tackles 39 dream team points Corey Wagner 8 kicks 3 handballs 11 disposals 10 tackles 68 dream team points Mitchell White 6 kicks 4 handballs 10 disposals 1 marks 5 tackles 49 dream team points

The Casey Demons didn't have far to travel when they took on Richmond VFL Tigers in neighbouring Beaconsfield in a pivotal game as far as their finals aspirations were concerned. Unfortunately, they played the first half as if they had traveled thousands of kilometres and were still suffering jet lag, managing only a single point in the opening quarter against the inaccurate Tigers who were helped by a goal on the siren to 2.5.17 and a 16 point lead. For Casey the trip seemed like a journey down a road too far. The Demons were always going to be in trouble in this match given that the injuries ravaging the club at AFL level meant that only 9 of the Melbourne list were selected for the game - half that of the Richmond team. Of those, only five had any AFL experience at all and in any event, a few of the Demon listers made minimal contributions to the team effort. Matters only got worse when the home side straightened up and outscored the Demons by four goals kicking 5.1 to 1.1 in the second term to blow out to an insurmountable 40 point lead by the main break. Casey's only goal for the half came from the boot of small man Aloysio Ferreira whose spectacular scissor kick was one of the team's few highlights to that stage apart from the hard work of Jack Trengove and Ben Kennedy. That pair and rookie Corey Maynard provide the few touches of class on the visiting side for much of the match. Ruckman Jake Spencer held his own in the ruck duels but like many of his teammates achieved little with the football. With the game virtually done and dusted and rain falling, the Demons finally made a better fist of things after half time. The defence worked hard to shut down the strong Tiger attack and while the game became a scramble, the Demons managed to prevent Richmond from pushing out their lead in the third term. While the Tigers relaxed a little at the end, Casey finished strongly to keep the margin down to 28 points in the end. Corey Maynard continued to impress with his hardness at the ball while Casey's Mitch Gent, Bayley Fritsch and Angus Scott (2 goals each in the second half) and James Munro (17 tackles) in defence were the best of the VFL listed players. Casey should welcome the week's bye because it desperately needs a boost in personnel if it is to challenge for the finals. Peter Jackson VFL 2017 Casey Demons 0.1.1 1.2.8 3.3.21 7.6.48 Richmond VFL 2.5.17 7.6.48 9.8.62 11.10.76 Goals Casey Demons Fritsch Scott 2 Ferreira Kennedy Maynard Richmond VFL Bzenic 3 Elton Moore 2 Bolton Ellis Silvestro Townsend Best Casey Demons Trengove Maynard Munro Fritsch Kennedy Johnstone Richmond VFL Broad Townsend Beasley Moore Bzenic Fletcher Statistics Dion Johnstone 4 kicks 7 handballs 11 disposals 13 tackles 77 dream team points Declan Keilty 3 kicks 3 handballs 6 disposals 2 marks 2 tackles 26 dream team points Ben Kennedy 1 goal 19 kicks 13 handballs 32 disposals 3 marks 5 tackles 114 dream team points Mitch King 3 kicks 4 handballs 7 disposals 1 marks 1 tackles 14 hit outs 36 dream team points Corey Maynard 1 goal 13 kicks 12 handballs 25 disposals 3 marks 7 tackles 100 dream team points Jake Spencer 2 kicks 8 handballs 10 disposals 5 tackles 37 hit outs 77 dream team points Jack Trengove 1 behind 14 kicks 12 handballs 26 disposals 4 marks 4 tackles 93 dream team points Sam Weideman 1 behind 4 kicks 3 handballs 7 disposals 5 marks 2 tackles 42 dream team points Mitch White 13 kicks 5 handballs 18 disposals 5 marks 4 tackles 78 dream team points The Development League team returned to the winning list after struggling early in the game and then taking control after half time. AFL Vic Development League 2017 Casey Demons 2.0.12 5.3.33 8.3.51 11.7.73 Sandringham 2.5.17 6.7.43 7.7.49 8.10.58 Goals Casey Demons Ambler Baker Gardiner 2 Armour W Collis Freeman Gill-Renouf Rout Sandringham Rich Sakeson 2 Bailey Gregson Larkin Lopo Best Casey Demons Baker W Collis Hillard Dan Johnston Dam Johnston Byers Sandringham Laumets Bailey Grace Rich Sakeson Pavlou