This Week – The Team
Round 24 – The Team
Four players have been added to the team this week: Rohan Bail, Matthew Bate, Jack Fitzpatrick and Daniel Nicholson. As expected Liam Jurrah is out of the side due to injury. Congratulations to Stef Martin who will play his 50th AFL match.
Bail and Bate both starred for Casey last week while young Fitzpatrick also put in a bid for a first game and a forward role with four goals for Casey. The key question – will Cale get a run in the mid field this week after being named in the role for the first time! Could be a winning move from Coach Viney.
Melbourne
B: Sam Blease, James Frawley, Tom McDonald
HB: Colin Garland, Jared Rivers, Clint Bartram
C: Nathan Jones, Jordie McKenzie, Jamie Bennell
HF: Brad Green, Jack Watts, Jack Trengove
F: Tom Scully, Stef Martin, Neville Jetta
FOLL: Mark Jamar, Cale Morton, Brent Moloney
I/C (from): Matthew Bate, Tom McNamara, Luke Tapscott, Jeremy Howe, Rohan Bail, Jack Fitzpatrick, Daniel Nicholson
IN: Rohan Bail, Matthew Bate, Jack Fitzpatrick, Daniel Nicholson
OUT: Liam Jurrah (wrist)
NEW: Jack Fitzpatrick
Simple Answers to Complicated Questions?
Simple Answers to Complicated Questions?
Round 23 Match Review By Darren Spence
Dr. Seuss once said “Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.” Many people have excogitated over the cause of the results of the Demons particularly over the last half of this year but I simply believe we played with little confidence. Sunday gave the boys the opportunity to gain some valuable impudence and after a torrid month for the Mighty Dees we finally saw Todd Viney break his duck with a win against the newbies of the comp – The Gold Coast Suns. Now I am not one to attenuate any win by the Dees – we all have endured our fair share of pain over the years – but it is fair to say that the club would have taken a collective breath on Sunday night, pocketed the win and will now turn to finish the season off with a win against the Power.
One thing the club would have been delighted about would have been the debut of Tom McDonald, the form of Sam Blease and the return to AFL of Tom McNamara, so let’s have a look at their games and some of our other key contributors to the win.
Clint Bartram– Clint took on the unenviable task of shutting Gary Ablett out of the game and whilst Gazza did get a few possessions, his influence on the game was well down on his exulted standards. Clint has had some big scalps in previous weeks (Daniel Kerr etc) so he should be happy with the way he has finished off the season.
Jamie Bennell– In his 50thgame, Jamie had one of his better games for the Demons. His run through the corridor was a highlight and he was the catalyst for many scoring opportunities throughout the game.
Sam Blease– now where do I start? There are supposedly 7500 species of spiders in Australia that have yet to be named. So whilst the Arachnologists of Australia struggle to come up with appropriate spider names they would have little problem coming up with a host of adjectives to define Sam’s performance on Sunday and his potential. He even had the great Yoda of Australian sporting commentary confused when Bruce thought he actually was a left footer! Now that is a rarity. The Demons overall had 12 running bounces in the first quarter where our season average for the whole game was just 10. The large majority of these runs can be attributed to Blease and he is starting to repay the clubs’ faith in him in spades and I’m sure I speak for everyone in saying that we can’t wait to see more of him in the coming years. His speed and disposal are both elite and a Rising Star nomination is just rewards for both his game on Sunday and the hard work he has had to do endure to get back on the footy field.
James Frawley– Chippa put in another solid display and ended the game with 20 plus possessions and his rebounding out of the back 50 was consistently dangerous to the opposition.
Colin Garland– After a horror run with injuries Col is one player this year I have been so happy to see firmly cement himself as a key defender of our side. On Sunday he provided lots of run, had a career high disposal count and kicked a goal. He also had a game high nine rebounds from the defensive 50. He deserves to be proud of his achievements this year and will be a key component of our side moving forward.
Brad Green– the skipper has been under the pump in recent weeks, but on the weekend he responded as all champions do with his actions and played arguably his best game for the year. He finished with four goals and could have had a few more. When the game was in the balance he stood up when it counted and set his critics back in their place.
Nathan Jones– without doubt Jonesy’s had his best year for the club. In a newly defined role this year he has averaged the most possessions per game of any Demon and will figure highly in the Bluey count at season’s end. For the 8thtime this year Nathan had 25 or more possessions on Sunday and he has been one the shining lights for the year.
Liam Jurrah– LJ started on fire with two early goals and was a headache for the Suns defense. Unfortunately after flying higher than Charlie Sheen on a bad day he hurt himself and had to be subbed off. A disappointing end to a promising game but LJ will be back better and stronger in 2012.
Tom McDonald– a memorable debut for the boy from Ballarat. He showed poise that belies his youth and has now provided another player Dees fans can get excited about and look forward to many great games ahead.
Tom McNamara– it has been a long time between drinks for Tom since his last game but he and the club would be happy with his performance. I for one hope he gets a gig on the senior list next year and his game on Sunday would only have improved his chances.
Brent Moloney– Beemer had a team high 12 contested possessions on the weekend and kicked a career high three goals. It should have been four and I have no doubt he would be slightly disappointed in missing the goal but he can’t be disappointed with his game. My bet is that he and Jonesy will be fighting for the Bluey this year.
Manlove 1– another solid game from Luke which saw him bag a goal. His season has definitely been one of the highlights of the year.
Manlove 2- sadly confined to the medical rooms for the season. I can’t wait to see the Gys next year.
So just when it seemed like it all only started weeks ago, we now find ourselves at the end of the year with our final game against the Power. The game will be momentous being the first game of AFL at the Adelaide Oval. As our record at AAMI stadium is just as bad as that at Etihad Stadium the change of venue will hopefully be a blessing for the boys and they will finish the season off strongly. Don’t for a second think this game will count for nothing – Port will fight to the death to avoid the wooden spoon and the Demons will not want to finish the season as the last placed Victorian side – most probable if we lose. So there is plenty on the line on Sunday and I cannot wait to see the Mighty Dees finish off the season strongly with back to back wins.
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