CASEY has fallen to Coburg by 16 points on Saturday afternoon, as the club completed its preparations for the 2024 VFL season.
While the result was inconsequential, the positive news of the day was Harrison Petty’s successful return from a foot injury.
The defender-turned-forward played out three quarters inside 50 for the Dees, before completing a running program on the sidelines prior to the end of the match.
Petty was unable to hit the scoreboard during his time on the field, but the outing was a step forward in his recovery process.
Taking to Casey Fields in their last practice match ahead of Round 1, the Demons found themselves on the wrong side of a game of momentum.
Andy Moniz-Wakefield did his best to keep his side alive, slotting his second goal of the day – highlighting a classy performance across half-back – to cut the margin to five points in the dying stages.
But Coburg responded with two late majors to put the result beyond doubt.
It was a strong showing for a relatively inexperienced Casey line-up, with just 10 AFL-listed players on display. Koltyn Tholstrup was held over as an emergency for Melbourne’s clash with the Western Bulldogs on Sunday.
Former Lion Tom Fullarton appeared comfortable in new colours, showcasing his agility when competing in the ruck, while also drifting forward to put through an early major.
The ball flew from end to end in the first term with a combined 14 scoring shots, but it was the Demons who edged nine points clear by the quarter-time siren.
Coburg had field position for the majority of the second term, with Adam Tomlinson, Matthew Jefferson and Jed Adams fighting manfully on the last line of defence for Casey, but three late conversions for the away side left scores tied up at the main break.
The sun was beaming down at Casey making for a tiring contest, and as a result, scoring came to a halt in the third term.
Neither side was able to gain an advantage in a scrappy 25 minutes of play, leaving the result up for grabs in the last quarter.
When the game opened up late, it was Coburg who found the space to capitalise.
The midfield honours were shared on the day, with each team having moments of dominance.
Casey’s clearance work was at its best when captain Mitch White was getting his hands on the footy, accompanied by young guns Bailey Laurie and Kynan Brown.
After playing for Melbourne in Opening Round last week, Laurie took no time to pick up the pace of VFL footy, while Brown was equally as busy through the centre.
The father-son prospect is entering his first year at the club and showed promise on Saturday with his ability to find the ball. He also hit the scoreboard in the second term, tight roping the boundary line to run into an open goal.
Josh Schache was another who found himself in the clear on multiple occasions, booting two of his three goals for the afternoon from the goal square.
With the final hit-out of the pre-season under its belt, Casey is poised to face Box Hill at 2pm next Sunday, to open its VFL campaign on home soil.
SCORE
CASEY DEMONS 5.4 8.6 9.8 11.10 (76)
COBURG 4.1 8.6 9.8 14.8 (92)
NEXT
Round 1: Sunday, 24th March vs. Box Hill - 2pm @ Casey Fields
