Sunday is traditionally a day of rest
Where here in Jakarta families go to the pub to share a quiet family lunch with their kids in the hope of some peace and quiet on a lazy Sunday away from the hustle and bustle of a busy week in this crazy metropolis that makes up Jakarta.
I apologize to each and every one of these families by shattering their dreams on Sunday with my constant yelling and screaming – being the sole occupant in the enormous sports bar failed to mask my initial frustrations and ultimate glee as the mighty Demons won another close game against my much despised team in Caarlton.
No doubt this was always a danger game. Notwithstanding our burgeoning injury list the Blues have been in some decent form lately and early on it did look ominous as once again we started slowly and conceded the first 3 goals of the game.
Carlton supporters will look to 2 key injuries in the 2nd quarter as an excuse for their loss, and whilst there may be some credence to this argument, we have suffered similar fates in almost every game this year, so I am not going to shed a tear for them and our ability to grind out our second close win in a row speaks volumes for our developing maturity and belief as a group.
Tom McDonald was once again a match winner with 4 goals. They often say strength comes through adversity and without the injuries to Hogan, Spencer and Gawn then McDonald would more than likely have spent the entire year on the big gorilla forwards. Now we have the flexibility for him to also be the same gorilla up in front and he certainly has been a revelation this year. Furthermore it has allowed the fast tracking of the development of blokes like his brother Oscar and Sam Frost as well Pedersen. Who knows, these injuries may just turn into a blessing in disguise?…..just no more injuries OK?
Neal-Bullen recaptured his early season form and was dangerous with 24 possessions and 2 goals and Oliver took time out from chatting to those lovely Blues supporters to pick up a lazy 29 touches. You can hear St. Kilda supporters let out a collective groan every times Petracca touches the ball and he did that a lot on Sunday getting it 25 times. Last but not least Neville Jetta – the results of games can sometimes come down to one individual contest – and that last play of the game which saw Jetta win the ball is a perfect example of this – Neville is now starting to gain the recognition of the wider football world he deserves and an AA nomination is certainly not out of the equation.
This week we are on the road again on Saturday night. As the only side to have not lost interstate this year the boys will be super keen to keep this record intact and mirror our earlier season win against the Crows.
No further injuries last Sunday is a god send and we will be looking to bring key personnel in this week in what is going to be a cracking game and a 4 quarter performance will guarantee our further entrenchment in the top 8.
Go Dees
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Pet rocks, Rubik’s cubes, lava lamps, bell bottoms …
By Darren Spence
I grew up in the 70s. An era of pet rocks, Rubik’s cubes, lava lamps, bell bottoms and the Dees getting smacked every other week. This made school yard banter a nightmare as I was always a source of constant ribbing about the side I adored. Luckily back then all we had really was shows like ‘The Winners’ for people to actual see us get belted.
How times have changed.
Now every game is either live or available on full replay and dissected on the myriad of TV shows and on social media at unprecedented levels. Why is this important?…Even though we have enjoyed sustained periods of success since the 70s (albeit not winning the big one) I still have flashbacks to my childhood era whenever a Dees game is front and centre and hope the football public (read my old schoolyard) give us the credit and acknowledge us as a good side.
Last Friday night was a perfect example.
Up against last year’s grand finalists and in cracking form, the Dees crippled with injuries, 4th game in 18 days would my schoolyard mates be revelling in my misery once again on our only Friday night game of the year?……It started ominously……The Swans kept us in the game in the first quarter with bad conversion and we actually held the lead at quarter time – due solely to our better efficiency inside 50. From there on it became quite apparent that this wasn’t going to be our night as our boys looked flat and our lack of key personnel took its toll and we were outplayed to lose by 35 points.
It could have been worse…..With Viney not returning after half time, the Dees of old would have lost by 10 goals plus. Even the staunchest anti Melbourne school yard bully would be hard pressed not to pay credit to the way the guys fought out the game and, even with a loss, the team hasn’t lost credibility in the football world.
Not so if you read the media this week.
Last week we were world beaters. This week we have an endemic cultural problem. Yes a few incidents happened but I am not buying the whole “chicken hawk” thing. They need to sell papers I get it……We will be fine. Our leadership group is strong and so are our coaches.
Back to Friday night and Hibberd was again great. He was our best player on the night and helped weather the Swans’ attacks picking up 33 touches. Oliver (who spent the first 15 minutes on the bench – a coincidence?….I don’t think so), finished with 24 disposals and Tom McDonald continues to enhance his reputation as the ultimate tall swingman with 19 possessions, 6 marks and 2 goals. We didn’t get the points and I walked away disappointed but we are still entrenched in the top 8 with an important tilt to the finals ahead.
This starts on Sunday. Up against the Blues with more wounded than the Battle of Stalingrad it’s going to be another challenge. They too are a young side looking to make their way up the ladder and what better way to show them the pecking order and make amends for our shock loss against them last year than beating them on the weekend?
Go Dees
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TMac – Grinning like a Cheshire Cat!
I can’t stop smiling really!!
by Jacqui Parry
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AN UNFAMILIAR FEELING ….
by Darren Spence
I don’t know about you but all day I had this feeling. It’s not one that I have experienced often in recent years. All day waiting for the game to start and even during the game the feeling of my heart beating out of my chest.
- Was it because I realised the importance of this game for our final aspirations?
- Was it because I realised that we are indeed a genuine contender this year and these are the games that we need to win but somehow never seem to?
- Was it because it was the end of Ramadan and as such all pubs were closed and I couldn’t watch the game having a beer?
- Was it because I had to watch the game at home on my computer with dodgy WiFi expecting any minute for it to go down leaving me no option to watch the game?
I still don’t know the answer to this but I was genuinely nervous all day Saturday right up to the final siren with (and I know I have said this a lot recently) one of our best wins in many years.
A lot has been said about us not winning against the Eagles in Perth since 2002…yes it was a LONG time ago…I actually remember that game. It had quite a few parallels to the game on the weekend, the Eagles kicked a goal in the first minute of the game, we came from behind in the last quarter to win by 6 points and it was a key forward that won the game for us. Back then it was David Neitz who kicked 3 last quarter goals to get us over the line well supported by Travis Johnstone, Stephen Powell, Paul Wheatley and Clint Bizzell….yes it is a long time ago!
But I don’t read too much into that. The Eagles are a hard team to beat in Perth, it is the hardest road trip in footy and most teams struggle to win over there but now we stand as the only team in the competition to have won all interstate games this year and how good does that sound? It says a lot about the inbred belief that this team has to overcome any adversity and a sense that they can indeed win any game.
And overcome adversity they did! Yes the Eagles had some key personnel out but they are a quality outfit with aspirations to go deep into September but for our boys to get up missing Jones (and his immeasurable leadership) as well as Watts and Hogan and then losing Viney (for a quarter) and Salem and Garlett; words cannot express how proud I was after the game. In fact there weren’t any words…it was just a loud scream and punching the computer table numerous times….it was loud…so loud in fact that security knocked on my door to check everything was OK.
The grin on my face told him everything he needed to know and I actually really didn’t care if I disturbed the neighbours with my celebration as they were celebrating the end of Ramadan…I was still the happiest and loudest man in Jakarta last Saturday night.
I had the belief that we had to start well on Saturday. We haven’t started well in many games this year and over in Perth with a parochial crowd, it was all the more important to weather the early storm. It started ominously. With a goal in the first minute and our boys struggling to get inside 50, my heart started beating faster. But then he stood up. Jack Viney take a bow. Sole captain for the first time in his career he single handedly brought his mates into the game with a massive 10 clearances and a goal in the first quarter.
The game itself was a quality game. It was close all day and I couldn’t help but be impressed with the way our boys take on the game at every opportunity. It goes back to what I was saying earlier, they have this belief and trust in one another that sadly has been lacking for many a year. They are fast, they are attacking, they are competitive, they are now a force to be reckoned with.
Another impressive thing about the win was that many of our best players in the past weeks were down on output on Saturday. This was more than made up with the game from Viney (38 possessions, 26 of those contested), he missed most of the 3rd quarter and was still BOG by the length of the Nullabour Highway.
Tom McDonald with 5 goals including the match winner, Tyson with 33 touches, Lewis with 29, Vince with 27, Oliver with 28 and the return of big Maxy with 42 hit outs all dragging the mighty Demons to a famous win in the West. More into these stats, I loved how the senior guys all lifted. Viney, Lewis, Hibberd, Vince all had high numbers in the critical final term and delivered us the vital 4 points.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the Oliver incident at half time. He has copped it from every corner on Social Media and the press. I think people forget sometimes that he is just 19. He is a still a baby in a man’s world and I am sure the leaders at the club and the coaches will get around him and support him over the coming weeks/months as he undoubtedly will cop abuse for his apparent dive and subsequent tweet.
Talking about coming weeks…..what about this Friday night against the Swans? Two teams in red hot form, two teams vying for the finals, a record crowd expected. Can we make it 5 wins in a row? You bet we can!
Go Dees
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THE REAL DEAL!
by Darren Spence
I have watched well over 1,000 games of our beloved Dees in my time and I am struggling to find many games where I thought we played a more complete game against a top team (last year’s premiers nonetheless!).
I am sure we probably have.
Perhaps my memory is fading?
Perhaps I just have been crying out for a 4 quarter performance all year?
My memory just doesn’t quite elude me that much that I can’t remember the finals appearances in the late 80s and early 90s where we did indeed play a complete game against good sides but hey that was last CENTURY!
On the weekend it was definitely one of the best performances that I have seen the boys play in years and I think one word summed it up for me PRESSURE.
The sustained pressure was outstanding and definitely put the footy world on notice…I doubt there will be any more claims from Mitch Robinson that Melbourne play “bruise free footy” from here on in.
On Sunday we were on from the opening bounce till the final siren and all players played their individual roles and then some. Some may argue it started before the game with Bugg’s cheeky Instagram post!……Has there ever been a more appropriate surname in VFL/AFL history than “Bugg”?…..He is a serial pest to all opposition sides and supporters alike, I for one am glad he is on our side!
My man love for Michael Hibberd is well known and on the weekend he was BOG. He has just organised our defence so well and is giving great confidence to our young boys down back. He finished with 27 disposals and 11 marks. Oscar McDonald again played a great game drawing high praise from the coach, Sam Frost is growing in confidence with every game and he is becoming a key part of our defensive make up.
Oliver did what Oliver has done all year finishing with 29 touches and 8 tackles, Salem was good, Garlett was a dangerous as always, Lewis led all comers on the disposal sheet, Watts was great until injured and both Pedersen and Tom McDonald played important roles in trying to nullify the hit out advantage by the Dogs and they did it magnificently. To be fair I could have mentioned the whole team…they all deserve praise as the Melbourne Footy Club ran out 57 point winners against last year’s premiers and broke a 10 year hoodoo against the Dogs at Etihad Stadium.
This week it doesn’t get any easier. A six day break over in Perth against another finals aspirant. We will welcome back Gawn with open arms and at this early stage we may be without Jones and Watts.This year we have shown strength through adversity many times and I can’t see Saturday being any different.
It’s time to start thinking about using the ‘F’ word….it’s been a long time since I have mentioned that ‘F’ word and Melbourne in the same sentence. I must admit, however, I have uttered the other ‘F’ word and Melbourne a few times over the years!
It’s going to be a cracker game, another chance to break a hoodoo and reinforce the belief in long suffering supporters that we are the real deal!
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