Articles

Sure as Hell…….
By George on the Outer
2008-05-04

….beats losing!

The second greatest come from behind win in the 150 year history of the game, saw the Demons notch their first win for the year. The team fittingly rewarded those who turned up on the day, and gave themselves and the coaching staff a much needed boost as well.

51 points down at half-time with a lousy 3 goals scored and it looked like a repeat of the past 6 weeks. The usual culprits were doing much the same and whatever Dean Bailey said or did at half-time, it should be bottled for another day.

Yes it was a momentous win, but all the failings were there to see again in the first half. Robertson played half a game and despite 4 goals (3 again in the last quarter )including some of the usual miracles, his performance for 100 minutes was miserable. Would he have finished so well if McPharlin was on the field for that final 30 minutes? Probably not, and he still appears not to understand that 100 minutes of effort is required for the team to win games.

He had plenty of cruisers alongside in the first half, but the tide was turned by a couple of hard working, tireless, never-give-up players in Mark Jamar and Brad Miller.

Try this for a stat…when Jamar was rucking we kicked 11 of the 17 goals for the team ( maybe more because I missed the first quarter ), including 10 of the last 12!!!. When White was on the ground rucking, Freo kicked their last 4 goals. Or look at it another way…Freo didn’t score a goal in the second half with the Russian on the ground. It is not just about hitting the ball out of the air, it was the second efforts, the tackling the hard body on body against the biggest player in the AFL that won us the game in the middle. Suddenly, McLean, Moloney, Bruce and Junior start getting the leather. Suddenly the ball is in the forward 50 and results happen.

The Russian will be back in 2 weeks. Hopefully, the coach now has the evidence of where the future lies….

Miller played his best game for probably 2 years. Strong, tough and relentless with 10 marks at CHF he threw his body around and used his strength to good effect, not seen since his early days. These weren’t easy “chip it around” type marks, they were solid contested possession. And like Jamar it was the second efforts that impressed. We can only keep the fingers crossed that Dean Bailey has been able to undo the damage that ND did to him in the past 5 years.

It would be remiss to not mention the twin excitement machines of Davey and Wonaemirri. 7 goals between the pair of them and each and every one with that touch of brilliance. These are the sparks that the team needs when the going gets tough and they provided a bonfire worth…..

And a special mention goes to the backline. For the first time this year they looked a solid unit. They suddenly had options other than the stalwarts of Carroll and Rivers. The young Frawley, Garland and Warnock stood together as a team along with Bell. They all have a long way to go, but importantly they are prepared to run and back themselves. They will get beaten badly in the future against better opposition, because they are still young. But today they learned what they have to do consistently and to win games.

And finally today it happened…..For weeks I have stated that I would know when Dean Baileys message was getting through when I saw a Melbourne player bump or shepherd the opposition away, so that a team-mate was advantaged. It happened in the 3rd quarter when Paul Wheatley cleaned out his opponent brilliantly to open up a forward thrust. It is not just a physical statement, but it means the players have got it through their collective heads that this is about being a team. May the disease spread rapidly…..

Today was a great win for the club. It was a tonic in the nick of time. It also represents the changing of the guard. We did this without Neitz, Yze and effectively White. They are no longer needed to win games, and the future lies with others. After 6 rounds DB said he knew who had a future and who wouldn’t. It was a prophesy that has come to pass. ( Perhaps he really is Yoda!!)

We will win few more games this season. The team we beat today have only won a solitary game as well, and have shown their traditionally fragility again, even with a 9 goal lead.

But a win is a win…..and it sure beats the Hell out of losing!