Mighty Max Leads Dees In Dogfight

Round 17 –  Western Bulldogs Vs Melbourne – Mighty Max Leads Dees In Dogfight

Liam Chambers – our correspondent in Coffs Harbour

Another win and the second against the Doggies. We waited tentatively on Saturday evening to see which Bulldogs side would turn up and for the first half it seemed like the giant killers from Round 15 were back and that we might suffer the same fate as Geelong. A brilliant third quarter settled the Demon’s nerves and it was a comfortable win in the end.

Max Gawn just keeps getting better and his hitouts were just poetry in motion. Watching the highlights was to see a smorgasbord of deliveries to the waiting Demon players. He even seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, flicking a back hander to Angus Brayshaw as if it was as natural as breathing. Angus Brayshaw put in another sterling performance, running, tackling, disposing and generally frustrating the opposition.

Clayton Oliver is a genius with magic hands; he even found time to slot home a goal. There is talk either himself or Maxy taking the Brownlow Medal this year and if they put in many more displays like the one at the MCG then don’t bet against either one. The two Christians (Petracca & Salem) again showed what top notch players they are capable of being. Once they can maintain the consistency of quality football they display on occasion, then they will help make Melbourne a truly great side.

Speaking of consistency, Jesse Hogan is finding the space between the uprights more regularly again. His four goals were vital in keeping the Demons second in terms of percentages. It great to see Jeff Garlett back in the side again and he looked determined to fight for his place, kicking two goals against the Bulldogs. Tom McDonald is looking fit again after the brutal game against Port Adelaide last month. Jake Melksham is going from strength to strength and his solitary goal on Saturday doesn’t do justice to the way he played.

Melbourne have many pluses but some of the negatives need to be ironed out in order to beat the more fancied sides that we’ll be playing before finals. We make some great runs of play that often end in a behind or have us slipping up at a vital moment. Our defending has improved which is good as the defence will need to be at it’s best against the Cats at their home ground. We displayed some dominating football in the last five minutes of the Bulldog’s game which looks very promising. The ability to be able to pick up the pace late in the game will be vital against the tougher teams. Some commentators still doubt that the Dees can play finals footy but I really believe that we will step up to the challenge over the last six rounds and will surprise a few critics into the bargain.

Finally, the brilliantly consistent Neville Jetta has signed a three year extension with the Demons and that’s got to be a boost for Dee’s fans everywhere.

 

 

 

MELBOURNE 3.4 6.9 14.9 18.11 (119)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 4.1 6.6 9.9 10.9 (69)
GOALS
Melbourne: Hogan 4, McDonald 3, Garlett 2, Neal-Bullen 2, Spargo 2, Petracca, Melksham, Oliver, Hannan, Lewis
Western Bulldogs: Wallis 3, Schache 2, Johannisen 2, Hunter, Lipinski, McLean

Footy is an easy game sometimes….

May the Beard Grow Long and the Hammies stay Strong

by Jacqui Parry

Really excited about the game at the Cattery on Saturday – Merlin and Sugar have asked for special dispensation to attend (as they are cats but not CATS).  However the humourless people who manage the ground won’t allow MFC feline pet members in – poor sports don’t you think.

Meantime, we worship the ground Gawny walks on of course. Here are a couple of old pics of us doing so.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best wishes from Jacqui Parry, Merlin and Sugar
Proud Guernsey Sponsor of Max Gawn No. 11
May the Beard Grow Long and the Hammies stay Strong – cos’ we are goin’ to the Big Dance this year!!!!!!!!!!!!

Learning to win

Darwin Deliverance For Dees

Round 16 – Melbourne Vs Freemantle – Darwin Deliverance For Dees

Liam Chambers – our correspondent in Coffs Harbour

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome to the Northern Territory. Hot and a bit humid but always laid back. There was nothing laid back about the Dees performance though. We had to win this game otherwise we would slip out of the top eight and the prospect of finals would sink like a spectacular Darwin sunset. We won every quarter but overall Melbourne was not as convincingly as they needed to be. Twenty four behinds against an injury hit Fremantle was disappointing despite a very good last quarter from the Dees.

However, having said that, I think Melbourne played more as a team than they have all season. That sounds strange considering some of the winning margins they racked up against the likes of Adelaide and the Bulldogs. They defended and tackled decisively and there was a strong sense of camaraderie amongst the players. Eleven team members scored goals and that’s inspiring.

I may have been overly generous last week when I said Petracca played one of his best games of the season; he definitely performed well against the Dockers though. Once he starts scoring consistently he’s going to be unstoppable. Jeff Garlett came back and worried the Freemantle goal but unfortunately only scored once. Maxy Gawn did his party peace missing a sitter directly in front of goal but then scoring from 40 plus metres out and on an angle. Clayton Oliver prove his dexterity with the ball yet again and got 2 goals in his fiftieth game for Melbourne. Neville Jetta played his fiftieth consecutive game for the Dees and was integral as always, despite a few wayward kicks to the opposition.

Jesse Hogan was inconsistent again in front of goal. He has thirty six goals so far this season but he should have had more against Freo, missing some in the first quarter you would think were in the bag. I’m not sure if it’s a confidence issue with Jesse but he has yet to realise his true potential. Jones sent a spectacular shot through the goal posts to inspire the troops and Jack Viney ran himself into the ground. Brayshaw was again superb and even found time to have a punch up with his brother. Christian Salem was almost omnipotent, seemly appearing in several places at once.

With a wealth of talent, including young guns Spargo and Fritsch we shouldn’t be afraid of any team. Harmes, Neal-Bullen, Tom McDonald and Melksham can score a swathe of goals on a given day but we need to find that consistency. Sam Frost was a revelation. We need him to play like that week on week and our defence will be sound.

Next we play the Western Bulldogs again. They will want revenge for the 49 point win we secured in round eleven. They beat Geelong in round fifteen so they are still a dangerous side. If we played like we did in Darwin then we will be very hard to beat. Just how well we can win depends on how well we hone our accuracy in front of goal.

MELBOURNE 2.9 5.15 9.18 13.24 (102)
FREMANTLE 2.0 4.2 6.5 7.6 (48)
GOALS
Melbourne: Oliver 2, Hogan 2, Melksham, Jones, Garlett, T.McDonald, Salem, Gawn, Spargo, Harmes, Neal-Bullen
Fremantle: Cox 2, Sheridan 2, Walters 2, Mundy

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