Not exactly to plan but not all bad news
But hey it wasn’t all bad news in the penultimate round of the home and away season! Three of my favourite clubs, Collingwood, ‘Essedon’ and Carlton all lost on the weekend with the latter two clubs now confirmed to be enjoying September in the stands. All three clubs are going through their own respective ‘crises’ be it trying to sign up key players, missing the finals, an unprecedented soft tissue injury count or a coach under siege and it couldn’t happen to three better clubs. For once it isn’t the Demons on the back page for all the wrong reasons and I am smiling. I am smiling as for once the Melbourne Football Club is showing consistent signs of stability both on and off the field and, well let’s be frank, the three above mentioned clubs are the antithesis of this. Hah!
But back to the game on the weekend and, as I mentioned, we came out of the blocks first. In fact we were still well and truly in the game midway through the 2nd quarter but the 3rd quarter was far from our finest with the Crows piling on 10 goals to put the game well and truly to bed. Statistic wise the game didn’t mirror the score line – the Demons matched the Crows in inside 50s and had more disposals on the day. But alarmingly the Crows in ‘red time’ (after the 20-minute mark) of each of the opening three quarters outscored the Demons 9.6 to 0.2! This surely would have been a key area of frustration amongst the Dees brains trust. Our ability to run out games and indeed quarters has been a problem all year and it is clear the boys need another solid pre-season to build up their fitness base and properly adapt to the new game plan set in place.
Despite the loss we did have some very good performances on the day:
- The standout was Colin Sylvia. A game high 34 disposals was a fantastic effort. Colin had an interrupted pre-season and his form, particularly in the back half of the year, has been outstanding and he is showing the football world just why he was taken #3 in the draft.
- Nathan Jones racked up 25 touches coupled with 8 clearances and a goal in another ‘Bluey’ voting effort.
- Jack Grimes continues with this sublime form collecting 23 possessions in what undoubtedly has been his best year at the club.
- Rohan Bail also played a good game and easily was in our best players finishing up with 22 disposals and a team high six inside 50s.
Darren Spence
A special type of feeling
A special type of feeling – Darren Spence
Friday 24 August 2012
Selamat Idul Fitri!….. That’s right it is the end of the Holy Month of Ramadan and the Muslims around the world are celebrating. And it’s not just the Muslims that are jovial at present…….not only do these festivities give me 10 days off work but I also got to celebrate our beloved Demons win in Canberra on Saturday. Yes Canberra! A rare win away from the MCG and our fourth win for the season.
It was cold and blustery in our nations capital and, let’s be honest, the game will hardly be a feature in any ‘great games of the season’ package but I really don’t care how we win. Some may call me crazy but I ‘think’ Melbourne will win every game we play but on the weekend I ‘expected’ us to a win.’ This type of feeling has been lost of late and originates back in a time in the late 80s and early 90s where my ‘expectation’ of a win (and indeed winning) played out more often that not. This is a special type of feeling and one that I know we all long to experience again. I am firmly convinced that this is on the horizon and we had some key players on the weekend who will take us there.
- First and foremost our two co-captains. Jack Grimes continued his outstanding form of late to pick up 24 touches, 9 tackles and finished up kicking a goal. Jack Trengove played arguably his best game for the year getting a season high 23 disposals and also managed 2 goals.
- They say that there are only two certainties in life – death and taxes. Well you can add two more – in 2012 Nathan Jones will win the ‘Bluey’ and Jeremy Howe will win mark of the year. Whilst it wasn’t Jonesey’s best game for the season, he was more than servicable clocking up 24 possessions. Howe, on the other hand, took another hanger and finished with 3.3 goals and in my book was our best player on the day.
- Someone who could mount a claim for our best player against the Giants is Lynden Dunn. In what may end up being a career defining second half of the season, Dunn has been fantastic in the back line. On Saturday he celebrated finally removing that horrible mo with a career high 28 disposals which included 10 marks.
- Rarely does a substitute player get a mention here but rarely does a footballer come along like Jack Watts. Coming on after half time Wattsy was smoother than Casanova’s pillow talk and picked up 15 disposals in a great comeback game.
- Finally Joel MacDonald and Tom McDonald played solid games – Joel playing the best football in the red and blue of his career this year and well Tom, I have been glowing in his praise all season and he continues to be a great revelation.
This week it is the Crows back at the ‘G’. In what is Brad Green’s farewell tribute game and with Adelaide smarting after their shock loss to the Lions and fighting for top spot, the match will be full of emotion. I hope all Demon fans turn up to bid farewell to one of the Demon greats. And by the way, I think we will win!
Darren Spence
BISTRO at the CAMELIA GROVE HOTEL is the WINNER for “BEST OF SYDNEY- DINNER” 2012
Join the NSW Demons this Sunday to watch the game on the big screen and indulge in food from the award winning bistro at the Cammy, our AFL supporting pub. The Bistro at the Camelia Grove Hotel has won Alternative Media Group’s “Best Dinner” in Best of Sydney Awards 2012 thanks to their famous Cammy Signature Burger and more. Come down and try one for yourself!
Enjoy the weekend and Go Dees!
Sally Trevena
Raid Your Piggy Bank
Raid Your Piggy Bank – Darren Spence
Thursday 16 August 2012
Everybody look between couch, raid your piggy bank, find every spare dollar you have and donate it to the 100% Melbourne Fund as the game on the weekend again highlighted the fact that we need another key forward as we embark on our quest to be ‘The Masters of the MCG’. Look I personally do not think that Travis Cloke will leave the Pies but imagine a forward line containing Clark, Cloke and LJ in 2013!!!!…….That’s gotta be worth an extra 10,000 members in itself!
I shouldn’t have to highlight how frustrating it can be following Melbourne and in case anyone did forget, have a look at the replay of Saturday’s game. We kicked our first goal at 16mins into the second quarter and went into half time with only two goals on the board yet at that stage we had more of the ball and more inside 50s than the Saints. The boys worked so hard to get the ball into an attacking area but without the key personnel on the park their collective hard work continued to go unrewarded.
Our third quarter started promisingly and I was Big Kev excited when the Dees were within a kick. But then we were blown away in the blink of an eye and before I could even finish my beer we were 50 points down and out of the game. To the boys’ credit they did fight back with eight last quarter goals but this just added to the frustration as once again the Demons failed to string four quarters together. And as we have seen time and time again this invariably results in a loss. They say you can’t buy experience in a shop and the Saints had collectively more than 1200 AFL games experience than our players on the park on the weekend. This ongoing mismatch is something that the 100% Melbourne Fund is looking to address.
So we lost by 25 points but we did have some performances that warrant a mention:
- Our co-captain (and NSW Demons sponsored player I might add) Jack Grimes is having his best season to date. After 32 games in 4 years Jack has played 18 games this season and on Saturday it was one of his best games in the Red and Blue. Spending much of his time in the midfield he was our leading possession getter with 29.
- Sammy Blease – one of my favourite players on our list – had a blinder with 5 goals and now enjoys bragging rights with Jordie Gysberts by joining an exclusive club with having two Rising Star nominations. I love watching Sammy play – his speed is electrifying and he is one of a burgeoning number of exciting players on the Melbourne Footy Club list.
- Nathan Jones did what Nathan Jones has done all season and picked up 26 touches while I was impressed with the way James Sellar competed through the course of the game and finished with two goals and probably should have had more.
- Joel Macdonald played arguably his best game in the red and blue and racked up 27 possessions whilst other members of our leadership group in Jack Trengove and Jared Rivers all put in solid performances.
This week it is GWS in a game that the boys will be fired up for. Our travelling record is as bad as the Togo ski jump team but feelings will be running high with the desertion of Tom Scully still burning deep inside. It looks like Lukey Tapscott will be playing this time around…..Memo to Mark Neeld……please please play him on Tom Scully!!
Go Dees
Thinking Demons
Thinking Demons
Thursday 9 August 2012
Socrates once said “I cannot teach anybody anything; I can only make them think”. Now I am not sure if Mark Neeld is a fan of the classical Greek Athenian philosopher but this year Neeld and his brains trust have been spending all season getting the boys to think and play a different brand of football and the fruits of this labour were in full force on Saturday as the Mighty Demons flew out of the blocks and comprehensively beat the Gold Coast Suns.
I couldn’t believe the rumours last week that, given the GWS win, our proud club may contemplate ‘tanking’ to possibly finish last this season! What a loud of CRAP! as the game was over at quarter time and this time it was Melbourne that had all the play. I expected the Dees to win but six goals to zip at quarter time perhaps exceeded most supporters’ expectations.
Despite being elated with the win I am sure this is tainted with a hint of disappointment in that the margin was not greater – especially given the fact that the Suns’ bench showed a remarkably close resemblance to a bombed WW1 bunker by the end of the game. An interesting stat this year is that Melbourne have won 13 qtrs in the first half of this season but only 5 after half time and many put this down to experience and the youth of the list. This certainly wasn’t the case on the weekend when for only the second time this year our playing list had notched up more games than our opposition.
But hey!……I will take the win……in fact I will take ANY win and for only the third time this year I was happier than Matthieu Ricard! (a French Buddhist monk often reported to be the ‘happiest man on the planet’). The day started off on a great note with the announcement that two of our most talented players had committed to the Demons for a further three years! The signing of Nathan Jones and Jeremy Howe is fantastic news and really does show the faith that our players have with the direction the club is heading. Losing Jordie before the bounce made me a tad nervous but we had several players who lifted and ensured we came away with the 4 points. Let’s have a look at some of our key performances.
- Do I even need to tell you????….cue that algorithm!!…<INSERT NATHAN JONES> Jonesey celebrated his new contract with belting out 29 touches and 5 tackles to be our leading possession getter in just another ‘Bluey’ voting performance.
- Colin Sylvia has been in true Draft pick #3 form of late and picked up 24 disposals and capped off a great day with 2 goals.
- Talking about goals Brad Green finished with five and celebrated with vigour. I haven’t seen such high quality celebrations since Aussie was at the club!
- Brent Moloney is officially back in form with 24 possessions whilst our two co-captains, Jack Grimes and Jack Trengove and Tom McDonald and Jeremy Howe were all amongst our best players which was a Grand Old Day for the Mighty Demons.
- Lastly I am going to keep banging on about Jake ‘the pencil’ Spencer as I am absolutely loving the way he is going about his footy. He chases hard, he presents at contests and on the weekend managed his first senior AFL goal. He had the most hit outs on the ground and I am so happy to see the big man playing well.
This week it is the Saints – another ‘bogey’ side of late. The last time we beat St Kilda Brock McLean dominated in a memorable finals win. Well there won’t be finals this year and there definitely won’t be McLean running out in the Red and the Blue on Saturday but I sure the boys will be keen to make it two in a row as they strive to finish the season on a high note.
Go Dees
I love the Olympics
I love the Olympics – Darren Spence
Thursday 2 August 2012
Well the Olympics are on and you really know you live in Indonesia when the prime time viewing is the preliminary round match between Nigeria and Sweden in the table tennis. (Some guy from Sweden won for those of you that are interested). By the way – what exactly do table tennis commentators do between Olympic Games anyway? I love the Olympics. It is the only 2 weeks every leap year that people sit down watching sports they have absolutely no idea about. It is the only time arm chair experts come out and shout at the Canadian diving judge for giving a diver a 9.0 when ‘he clearly opened up on his pike way too early’ as well as shake your head at how the Chinese gymnast only received a 7.5 for execution when ‘ he definitely landed his Yurchencko vault’.
However you don’t need to be an arm chair expert to realise the Mighty Demons continue to struggle to string four quarters together and as a result on Saturday our hoodoo at Etihad stadium and against the Roos remained intact. It really is both frustrating to watch now and yet tantalising for our future as our new game plan provides us glimpses of hope for the years to come. North came out of the blocks and the game was all but over by quarter time but to our boys credit we fought back hard winning the 2nd quarter before delivering what Mark Neeld claimed was ‘a sub-standard AFL quarter’ after the main break. The Dees broke even in the final stanza but to be honest we were never really in the game. Why North have the wood over us in recent years discombobulates me but we will now have to wait till next year to address the imbalance.
The game, however, didn’t leave us bereft of honourable mentions on the Demon front.
- Cue that algorithm <INSERT NATHAN JONES> was our leading possession getter with 32 and managed to kick a goal.
- Jonesey was clearly our best player and will take away his first ‘Bluey’ this year by the length of the Flemington straight. Last year’s ‘Bluey’ winner Beamer Moloney returned to the team with a welcome return to form getting his hand on the ball 29 times.
- Big congratulations to our former skipper in Brad Green who finished with three goals whilst our current co-captain in Jack Grimes was solid with 23 touches.
- I want to mention big Jake ‘the pencil’ Spencer, he has had it tough with injuries but he is making the most of his opportunities. I love the way he chases hard and really commits himself to every contest. He finished with a career high 27 hit outs and is doing everything possible to ensure he stays on our list come the end of the season. I sure am one that hopes he does.
This week it is the Gold Coast Suns……a game which both teams will be very eager to win. I really can’t see our boys dropping this game and with the boys at Casey on top of the ladder the pressure will be on our senior players to ensure they retain their spots as our season nears its completion.
Go Dees
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