AFL Round 13 – Thursday 5th June ORFFA Round 11 - A Footballing Waste Land In The Waste Land, Mr Eliot wrote of a scene in an old English pub. Amidst conversations about wars and relationship woes, the barkeep is heard to yell - with increasing urgency - "HURRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME" For us, it is indeed time. Time to delist, time to farewell and time to decide on who will be returned to the free agency list before the ORFFA Mid Season Draft. Unfortunately, for those whose time it is, June - rather than April - may end up being the cruelest month. Mount Beauty Uglies v Cradle Mountain Devils Waikickamoocow Incorrigibles v Gariwerd Cockatoos Charlies Opening Spelunkers v Dunsborough Dung Beetles Lovely Banks Lilacs v Junee Jaguars Wineglass Bay Packers v Iron Knob Codpieces Larrikin Lagoon Lefties v Wagga Wagga Wombats Birdsville Battlers v Nareewillock Nuffers Gundagai Grasshoppers v Venus Bay Vultures
Getting in early this week - remember to put your teams in. Remember also that mid-season trade period starts June 2 - today in fact - and our delist deadline is scheduled for 9pm next Monday, June 9 - after the annual Kings Birthday game between Melbourne and Collingwood.
Final reminder - Freo and StKilda have byes this week. Thanks to this fact meaning four of my players will be resting, as well as my smorgasbord of injured players, I'll not be able to put a full team on the park this week. Sigh.
Here’s my lineup if anyone has the power to change players: Def: Max Holmes, Jake Bowey, Kane Farrell, Lachlan Bramble (Changkuoth Jiath) Mid: Touk Miller, Sam Durham, Willem Drew, Hugo Ralphsmith (Harry Rowston) Ruck: Jordon Sweet (Tobie Travaglia -oop) Fwd: Justin McInerney, Kade Chandler, Sam Wicks, Ben King (Ethan Read) INT: Sam Clohesy, Harvey Langford
Oops forgot about byes. I need to sub Travaglia out of that lineup! Here we go: Def: Max Holmes, Jake Bowey, Kane Farrell, Lachlan Bramble (Changkuoth Jiath) Mid: Touk Miller, Sam Durham, Willem Drew, Hugo Ralphsmith (Harry Rowston) Ruck: Jordon Sweet (Ethan Read -oop) Fwd: Justin McInerney, Kade Chandler, Sam Wicks, Ben King (Koltyn Tholstrup) INT: Sam Clohesy, Harvey Langford
The good news is that I have 15 players. The bad news is that I only have 15 players. Expectations aren't exactly sky high. So: D: Dale, Redman, Idun, Keane. M: Rowell, Richards, Ross, Warner R: Sims F: West, Bedford, Caddy, Daniels (a more random collection of forwards you'd struggle to find) I/C: Quaynor, Brown That's an interesting team - thank goodness Daniels decided to get fit and return this week.
Cradle Mountain Devils Round 11 team Out: R Ginbey (omitted), R Marshall (managed), J Steele (managed) In: S Pendlebury, T Nankervis, S Banks Def: D Zorko, R Laird, N Vlastuin, J Battle (L McDonald) Mid: J Hopper, S Pendlebury, E Langdon, S Banks (R Ginbey) Ruc: T English Fwd: R Maric, S Mannagh, T Greene, A Naughton (J Cripps) Int: R Marshall, J Lever (J Gresham) The Cradle Mountain Devils have made three changes for their Round 11 road game against reigning premiers, @bama ’s Mount Beauty Uglies. Midfielder Reuben Ginbey has been omitted and midfielder Jack Steele and ruckman Rowan Marshall have both been managed. CMD’s three inclusions are comprised of the club’s greatest ever player, midfielder Scott Pendlebury and Tasmanian duo, ruck Toby Nankervis and midfielder/defender Sam Banks. With the captain Steele out, vice-captain Nankervis will have the captaincy duties against the Uglies whilst Banks plays his first game of the season and takes Steele’s place as a starting midfielder. The ORFFA’s two mountain clubs have won three of the past four premierships with Cradle Mountain winning the flag in 2021 and Mount Beauty becoming the first ORFFA club to win back to back Grand Finals in 2023 and 2024. On all three occasions that a mountain team has won the premiership this club finished fourth at the end of home and away season and peaked at the ideal time to lift the ORFFA premiership cup on Grand Final day. Both clubs rank in the ORFFA’s top 4 for points scored in 2025 and are in the battle for a top four place with the third placed Devils having eight wins and two losses to be one win ahead of the fifth placed Uglies. The ORFFA’s two mountain clubs, Cradle Mountain and Mount Beauty are both in the mix to finish fourth at the end of the home and away season and/or win the 2025 premiership and there is a possibility that a mountain club will do this double for the fourth time in five seasons. Early in the season I should have acknowledged an inaugural Devil that retired in the off-season, with it being the last round before the mid-season break I will do so now. Dyson Heppell was the third player selected by the Devils with pick 37 in the inaugural ORFFA draft back in 2012, he spent 13 seasons with the club, playing in the midfield and defense and retired at the end of the 2024 season. Heppell was a member of Cradle Mountain’s 2021 premiership team and had five top five finishes in the Devils b & f in a six season period from 2013 to 2018. Heppell was the third last player from CMD’s inaugural crop to finish his career at the club. The last two inaugural Devils standing are Pendlebury (pick 1) and Dayne Zorko (pick 325). The Devils belatedly thank Heppell for his outstanding service to the club as a player and will be welcoming him back to Cradle Mountain in a non-playing role in 2026 after Dyson enjoys the 2025 season away from ORFFA clubland.
God if the Nuffers score 1000 this week it'll be a miracle. Up in Ballarat for a basketball tourney - it is cold and wet and bleak - but not as bleak as either the Nuffers or Richmond's performances. Redman withdrawing through injury is probably the final nail in the coffin. The byes can't come soon enough.