SO THE SEQUEL has been written and unveiled.
It certainly wasn’t a horror like the original. A gritty performance was played out as expected.
In assessing Melbourne’s clash against Geelong at Simonds Stadium on Saturday, the effort was genuinely met, even though the result wasn’t. Still, the Demons haven’t been the only team to struggle at Kardinia Park.
Geelong’s record at home is quite remarkable.
On the weekend, the Cats produced their 37th win from their past 39 outings at the Cattery. During that time, only losses to Port Adelaide (round 21, 2007) and Sydney Swans (round 23, 2011) have occurred. Incredibly, Port Adelaide’s win was the only time a team has kicked 100 points or more against Geelong. And on only eight occasions, the Cats haven’t recorded 100 points or more.
The fact is - as coach Mark Neeld said post match - it is the hardest trip in football, or at least akin to traveling to Perth. To play, and subsequently win at Simonds Stadium, is just bloody tough.
On top of that, the Cats also far outweighed Melbourne in games experience, with 2347 matches to 1595 - a difference of 752.
So, with that in mind, Melbourne’s 43-point loss was a reasonable result.
Of course, the figure doesn’t look great on paper, but given that the Demons have lost their past eight matches against the Cats by an average margin of 71.25 points - obviously inflated by last year’s shocking 186-point loss - it was a far better effort this time around.
Granted, Geelong’s inaccurate kicking also kept Melbourne in the contest, but aside from the second term, when the Cats won the quarter by 23 points, the Demons took it up to them.
The Cats won the first quarter by five points, the third by 11 and fourth by four.
Moreover, Melbourne had to overcome its scars of July 30, 2011, when it was on the receiving end of the second greatest losing margin in VFL/AFL history.
The Demons were desperate not to dwell on the past, but it was only natural that the players who played on that dark day last year couldn’t simply forget. They knew they had to confront the Cats at Geelong again, as co-captain Jack Trengove explained.
“We lost a lot of respect as a team and a club - and as individuals - when we came down here last year, so that was definitely at the forefront of my mind,” he said.
“We just wanted to gain some respect back and show Geelong that we weren’t just an easy beat, and that they were going to have to work hard to get the four points. That was the real focus going into the game.
“We wanted them walking off the ground at the end of the game thinking that they had a real hard time to beat us.
“The scoreboard didn’t acknowledge that at the end of the day, but I think from now on, they’re going to think twice about when they come up against the Demons.”
The match was also the second of a difficult seven match streak for the Demons, which plays seven of the top eight 2011 teams from rounds five to 11.
So far, the Demons have given two reasonable performances against St Kilda and Geelong. But another genuine challenge arises this Friday night against Hawthorn at the MCG.
Like it does against Geelong, Melbourne has a poor recent record against Hawthorn, having dropped its past eight by an average losing margin of 42.87 points. It hasn’t defeated the brown and gold since round eight, 2006.
Still, the positives are that Melbourne has shown improvement in its past three performances, as opposed to its opening three rounds.
The challenge is to back up against Hawthorn with another competitive four quarter effort.
Under lights on the big stage provides another hurdle for Melbourne to overcome. Again, it’s something that must be tackled head on. The Dees must give a strong account of themselves. That’s the expectation.
Pushing Hawthorn all the way will be the aim. Winning the four points will be the great test, but one that Melbourne must dare to achieve.
We will wait for Melbourne’s response on arguably its biggest stage for the season - only debated by its Queen’s Birthday clash on Monday, June 11 - in front of a large national audience.
It’ll be well worth watching.
It certainly wasn’t a horror like the original. A gritty performance was played out as expected.
In assessing Melbourne’s clash against Geelong at Simonds Stadium on Saturday, the effort was genuinely met, even though the result wasn’t. Still, the Demons haven’t been the only team to struggle at Kardinia Park.
Geelong’s record at home is quite remarkable.
On the weekend, the Cats produced their 37th win from their past 39 outings at the Cattery. During that time, only losses to Port Adelaide (round 21, 2007) and Sydney Swans (round 23, 2011) have occurred. Incredibly, Port Adelaide’s win was the only time a team has kicked 100 points or more against Geelong. And on only eight occasions, the Cats haven’t recorded 100 points or more.
The fact is - as coach Mark Neeld said post match - it is the hardest trip in football, or at least akin to traveling to Perth. To play, and subsequently win at Simonds Stadium, is just bloody tough.
On top of that, the Cats also far outweighed Melbourne in games experience, with 2347 matches to 1595 - a difference of 752.
So, with that in mind, Melbourne’s 43-point loss was a reasonable result.
Of course, the figure doesn’t look great on paper, but given that the Demons have lost their past eight matches against the Cats by an average margin of 71.25 points - obviously inflated by last year’s shocking 186-point loss - it was a far better effort this time around.
Granted, Geelong’s inaccurate kicking also kept Melbourne in the contest, but aside from the second term, when the Cats won the quarter by 23 points, the Demons took it up to them.
The Cats won the first quarter by five points, the third by 11 and fourth by four.
Moreover, Melbourne had to overcome its scars of July 30, 2011, when it was on the receiving end of the second greatest losing margin in VFL/AFL history.
The Demons were desperate not to dwell on the past, but it was only natural that the players who played on that dark day last year couldn’t simply forget. They knew they had to confront the Cats at Geelong again, as co-captain Jack Trengove explained.
“We lost a lot of respect as a team and a club - and as individuals - when we came down here last year, so that was definitely at the forefront of my mind,” he said.
“We just wanted to gain some respect back and show Geelong that we weren’t just an easy beat, and that they were going to have to work hard to get the four points. That was the real focus going into the game.
“We wanted them walking off the ground at the end of the game thinking that they had a real hard time to beat us.
“The scoreboard didn’t acknowledge that at the end of the day, but I think from now on, they’re going to think twice about when they come up against the Demons.”
The match was also the second of a difficult seven match streak for the Demons, which plays seven of the top eight 2011 teams from rounds five to 11.
So far, the Demons have given two reasonable performances against St Kilda and Geelong. But another genuine challenge arises this Friday night against Hawthorn at the MCG.
Like it does against Geelong, Melbourne has a poor recent record against Hawthorn, having dropped its past eight by an average losing margin of 42.87 points. It hasn’t defeated the brown and gold since round eight, 2006.
Still, the positives are that Melbourne has shown improvement in its past three performances, as opposed to its opening three rounds.
The challenge is to back up against Hawthorn with another competitive four quarter effort.
Under lights on the big stage provides another hurdle for Melbourne to overcome. Again, it’s something that must be tackled head on. The Dees must give a strong account of themselves. That’s the expectation.
Pushing Hawthorn all the way will be the aim. Winning the four points will be the great test, but one that Melbourne must dare to achieve.
We will wait for Melbourne’s response on arguably its biggest stage for the season - only debated by its Queen’s Birthday clash on Monday, June 11 - in front of a large national audience.
It’ll be well worth watching.
