VFL Sandringham Zebras 2015 News and Discussion

[Kilroy]

Dev Squad stats: Disposals- Davis 28, Verma 26, Ong 20, Roos 20, Tackles- Haidon 12, Davis 7, Verma 6, Noone 6, Ong 6
Dev Squad goals: McTaggart 3, Davis 3, Hayes 2, Neiwand 2, Williams, Harris, Woodman, Roos, Ong, D.Brown

 

[PetWussy]

Well, looking at VFL results, i couldnt help but notice that Mitchell Browns been named in the best for each of the games so far. Hes also kicked 7 goals from the 3 matches so i decided to do a bit more digging.
I forget he's only 24 years old so hes still relatively young, 196cm+93kg "utility", was a pick 15 in the same draft that yielded watts at pick 1 and sloane at 44 (so im not sure pick 15 means too much), and was considered by most to not even be a top 20 pick.
I had to see why Geelong delisted him considering big men take a fair amount of time, but since he had only managed 15 games in his time there i guess they didnt see enough potential. He did however, average 10 disposals and just under 4 marks in his afl career which isnt exactly "under-performing" for someone with such little exposure.
Based on his VFL form, if he can continue to be named in the best i would fancy our chances of offering him a rookie contract at the end of the year..

 

[sonnywalters]

Dev Squad stats: Disposals- Davis 28, Verma 26, Ong 20, Roos 20, Tackles- Haidon 12, Davis 7, Verma 6, Noone 6, Ong 6
Dev Squad goals: McTaggart 3, Davis 3, Hayes 2, Neiwand 2, Williams, Harris, Woodman, Roos, Ong, D.Brown

Is that Kenny Ong in the Dev side?

 

[sverik25]

So, Channel 7 has finalised its televised VFL games for the year, and we won't be seeing any more of Sandy, meaning that they'll only have been covered ONCE all year. Only ONCE out of 40 possible slots.

That's disgusting, especially when you consider how many times the likes of Collingwood, Richmond, Essendon and Footscray have been shown this year.

 

[sverik25]

Following up from my last post, this is the tally of how many times each team has been shown on 7 this year:

Footscray 6
Collingwood 5
Richmond 5
Port Melbourne 4
Essendon 4
Box Hill 3
Geelong 3
Northern Blues 2
Williamstown 2
Coburg 1
Frankston 1
Casey 1
Sandringham 1
North Ballarat 1
Werribee 1

Bad enough that the big clubs get the majority of the AFL TV coverage, they also get the majority of the VFL TV coverage. Joke.

 

[Periphery]

Following up from my last post, this is the tally of how many times each team has been shown on 7 this year:

Footscray 6
Collingwood 5
Richmond 5
Port Melbourne 4
Essendon 4
Box Hill 3
Geelong 3
Northern Blues 2
Williamstown 2
Coburg 1
Frankston 1
Casey 1
Sandringham 1
North Ballarat 1
Werribee 1

Bad enough that the big clubs get the majority of the AFL TV coverage, they also get the majority of the VFL TV coverage. Joke.

brb grabbing my pitchfork. Do we burn down AFL HQ or 7 HQ first?

 

[Mindtraveller]

brb grabbing my pitchfork. Do we burn down AFL HQ or 7 HQ first?

Burn down Etihad?

 

[Persevering Saint]

Changing tack a bit.

Sandringham are the ones enforcing the 13 players rule - the VFL doesn't care. Once it gets to Finals, and there's a sniff of a chance that they could actually get a flag, what do you think they'll say? Do you think they'll still insist on the 13, or will they say bugger it and pick best available from the plethora of eligible Saints? zebraman thoughts? Any others?

 

[Squizz]

Noting it's 15 players under the alignment, that's not many for Sandringham to fill. They have some pretty handy standalone talent (Mitch Brown, Jones, TDL, Cockie, Cook) and a number of other players have had strong games at times (Le Grice, Zijai, Noone) and also with a player like Ong kicking 4 goals in a final last year (and had 27 possessions and 3 goals in the ressies this week). And then there's the issues of when Richardson wants players to start their pre-seasons and if players need some end-of-season surgery.

Would be interesting to hear from zebraman if there is any flex, but the zebs have plenty of incentive to develop their own players (and have enough talent to justify 7 players even Cockie has issues returning from injury).

 

[zebraman]

Noting it's 15 players under the alignment, that's not many for Sandringham to fill. They have some pretty handy standalone talent (Mitch Brown, Jones, TDL, Cockie, Cook) and a number of other players have had strong games at times (Le Grice, Zijai, Noone) and also with a player like Ong kicking 4 goals in a final last year (and had 27 possessions and 3 goals in the ressies this week). And then there's the issues of when Richardson wants players to start their pre-seasons and if players need some end-of-season surgery.

Would be interesting to hear from zebraman if there is any flex, but the zebs have plenty of incentive to develop their own players (and have enough talent to justify 7 players even Cockie has issues returning from injury).

Correct Squiz...it's 15. This year has been different from others in that St Kilda have had very few injuries which means there are more players available than spots available.

Last year when we played Collingwood in the final it was 15-8. That's 15 Sandy and 8 St Kilda that highlights the depth of injuries that St Kilda had last year.

Now Tom Lee is gone for the year and he has been outstanding imo this year at Sandy. And with Cockie out for 6 weeks...(best case scenario I've heard) that's 2 vital players missing for the finals.

I understand why Spencer White has been playing seniors. But from what I've observed of him, he just won't make it. Which is a pity as I really like it when he gets switched on. Unfortunately that's not very often. He has pace...can outrun a player whilst bouncing the ball at full pace yet when it comes to chasing an opponent down..well..I think that's his biggest downfall.

And we'll now see who has to go for early post season ops if required. That can be the real test. Once we know that then we see who's available and hopefully we can go a long way into the finals

 

[Persevering Saint]

Correct Squiz...it's 15. This year has been different from others in that St Kilda have had very few injuries which means there are more players available than spots available.

Last year when we played Collingwood in the final it was 15-8. That's 15 Sandy and 8 St Kilda that highlights the depth of injuries that St Kilda had last year.

Now Tom Lee is gone for the year and he has been outstanding imo this year at Sandy. And with Cockie out for 6 weeks...(best case scenario I've heard) that's 2 vital players missing for the finals.

I understand why Spencer White has been playing seniors. But from what I've observed of him, he just won't make it. Which is a pity as I really like it when he gets switched on. Unfortunately that's not very often. He has pace...can outrun a player whilst bouncing the ball at full pace yet when it comes to chasing an opponent down..well..I think that's his biggest downfall.

And we'll now see who has to go for early post season ops if required. That can be the real test. Once we know that then we see who's available and hopefully we can go a long way into the finals

Thanks ZM. I guess the larger question is, if you are in a position get the chocolates this year, and it seems that the Saints-listed players are the best way for you to do that, do you think the Zebs will break the 15-player limit? Effectively, will you sacrifice development for your standalone players in 2017, for the sake of a better chance at glory in 2015?

 

[CALL ME SNAKE]

Footy's just dandy at Sandy

Date August 14, 2015

Martin Flanagan

Columnist for The Age

View more articles from Martin Flanagan
Follow Martin on Twitter Email Martin
​

​

An experience: Trevor Barker Beach Oval where there’s coastal scrub outside the fence and a wind coming in off the bay. Photo: Supplied​

• 
  Follow the Age Sport on Twitter

We're going to the footy at Sandy. That's what people with a fondness for Sandringham call it. I'm with Cath Ireland, a family friend. Her partner, Michael Predl, is head trainer with the Sandringham Zebra

We go by train and I enjoy the ride, the bayside suburbs being one of those parts of Melbourne I don't know that well. A few stops past Sandringham is Beaumaris. Most of what I know about Beaumaris comes from the paintings of Clarice Beckett (1887-1935). Her local landscapes have a mood about them I feel every time I come down here in the same way that thoughts of Victoria Park always loom large if I stroll around Collingwood. We walk from Hampton station to the Sandy ground. And it is sandy - the soil is white-grey, there's coastal scrub outside the fence and a wind coming in off the bay.​

​

These are the sort of footy grounds I grew up with. It seems like every match I saw at Burnie's West Park one side led by seven goals at quarter, at half-time they both had seven goals and then in the second half they played a game that had some logic to it other than the fact that the westerly coming off Bass Strait was plucking the ball out of the air and sending it in one direction.

Advertisement​

The wind at Sandy on Sunday isn't as strong as the Roaring 40s but it's a factor. That's what makes Port Melbourne getting to the front in the last term such a fine effort – they're kicking against the wind. But home teams always know best how to play the wind and the Zebras gallop away to win by 33 points and stay third on the VFL ladder.

The ground is called the Trevor Barker Beach Oval. That's evocative in itself. Trevor Barker is one of footy's special names. He was good looking, blond-haired and he played like a kid who refused to grow up, who refused to accept that falling head-first off packs was a good way of hurting himself notwithstanding the fact that he had, yet again, just taken one of the marks of the year. Trevor Barker was St Kilda for a time in the 1970s and '80s and he coached Sandringham to premierships in 1992 and 1994.
We pay $10 to get in. Not too much. A program is $3. The hot dog with cheese and mustard at a food stall is priceless. The main game is about 20 minutes away. We meet up with Michael Predl, in his kit as a Sandringham trainer, outside their rooms. He's with a young player who's going to miss through injury. Their conversation is easy, genial.
Players walk about – proud, muscular young men. I need to come to games like this now and then to see the physicality of the game up close. On television our attention is directed to patterns, trends, statistics. Up close, as the start of the match approaches, the players circle one another like a herd of wild horses building to a gallop.
The Sandringham captain, Adam Cockie, is out with a hamstring injury. He's cooking sausages on the club barbecue. When I tell him I've already had a hot dog at the other end, he says in a blunt, friendly way that the sausages are better. I have a sausage, I have a beer. So here I am in the middle of Melbourne with the smell of the sea in my face, bush at my back, watching the footy.
Sandringham has about a dozen supporters behind one goal. They're old-fashioned supporters. Listening to them is like listening to a 1930s radio program about going to the footy at Sandy. The object of their derision is the nearest Port Melbourne player. He is required to ride a wave of derision like a surfer. It's a game as old as the game itself. If he rises above their abuse and plays well, he wins and they lose, but it will be all on again anew when he next returns to Sandy to play.
The wind has started to make my head ring like a bell. Michael Predl lends me his Sandy beanie and Cath and I shelter on one side of the brick tower that holds the two coaching boxes. AFL football is pretty humourless but here the game's traditional comedy is on display.
We spot a young player with "I'm not perfect but I am loyal" tattooed on the back of his neck. And an older bloke who's added some chestnut dye to his hair but left a silver fringe at the front. I assume he ran out of dye. Cath says, no, he thinks he looks flash. Footy's ever so sophisticated now; even at this level there are platoons of coaches. Cath's favourite quote is a sharp exchange from the Port Melbourne bench: "Don't tell him to f---ing present! He doesn't know what f---ing presenting is!".
We watch the last quarter from the Sandringham social club, a modern building at the city end with a long, curved wall of glass looking out on to the bay. After the game, players and club officials come along, speeches are made, each club thanking the other for the game. I meet Sandringham coach Paul Hudson, son of Tasmanian football legend Peter Hudson. Paul Hudson's career didn't match his father's but he played 245 AFL games with Hawthorn and the Dogs. That's a lot of AFL football.
But the longer I am in the Sandringham Football Club social rooms the more I gaze out the long window. I live in Melbourne and scarcely think of Port Phillip Bay. Seen from here at sunset it is a vast mass of shining grey water, grey sky above it with a thin band of orange light at the horizon. It's an experience, going to the footy at Sandy.
​

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/footys-just-dandy-at-sandy-20150813-giy9nf.html#ixzz3j161CPVN
Follow us: @theage on Twitter | theageAustralia on Facebook

 

[Persevering Saint]

I wonder who the player is with that tattoo?

 

[zebraman]

Thanks ZM. I guess the larger question is, if you are in a position get the chocolates this year, and it seems that the Saints-listed players are the best way for you to do that, do you think the Zebs will break the 15-player limit? Effectively, will you sacrifice development for your standalone players in 2017, for the sake of a better chance at glory in 2015?

PS...I would hope that they stick with the 15-8 regardless of who is available. It's worked this year during the home and away so hopefully the same applies in the Finals. I understand the logic of breaking the limit but I'd still persevere with it during Finals.

 

[lethalsaints]

If Zebs keep winning, Box Hill fair chance to beat Williamstown in the last round. Zebs top2 would be awesome

 

[DT_35]

I see CJ is fav to win the JJ Liston medal. Haven't followed VFL much this year but good chance to win it I assume?

 

[bird_man]

Can someone please give a list of St Kilda players that have qualified for finals (and those that are close to qualifying)?

 

[bird_man]

I see CJ is fav to win the JJ Liston medal. Haven't followed VFL much this year but good chance to win it I assume?

I reckon he and Brown might steal a few votes off each other? What is Brown paying?

 

[Yabadoo22]

I'm guessing

 

[Tommy Wigs]

How far into finals before we expect to see Curren and Cockie back? Prelim week?

 

[zebraman]

How far into finals before we expect to see Curren and Cockie back? Prelim week?

I doubt if we'd see Tom Currren back after so long out. He is now walking without a moon boot but don't think he'd be anywhere near match fit. Would love to see him play again this year though. Cockie could be ready for the first week of finals I'm told. Been doing oxygen chamber to speed up the process. Just hope he doesn't rush it and cause further damage.

Not certain if McCartin will be available. Hopefully Holmes and Shenton will be plus a few others. I haven't seen the list of who is eligible but there are quite a few.

It was 15-8 yesterday. Thta's 15 Sandy and 8 St Kilda players. Last time we had that sort of ratio was the final against Collingwood last year

Tom Lee will be sorely missed. Been rock solid this year.

Win this week and we get a home final. Lose and Williamstown lose, we still will get a home final.

 

[sverik25]

I doubt if we'd see Tom Currren back after so long out. He is now walking without a moon boot but don't think he'd be anywhere near match fit. Would love to see him play again this year though. Cockie could be ready for the first week of finals I'm told. Been doing oxygen chamber to speed up the process. Just hope he doesn't rush it and cause further damage.

Not certain if McCartin will be available. Hopefully Holmes and Shenton will be plus a few others. I haven't seen the list of who is eligible but there are quite a few.

It was 15-8 yesterday. Thta's 15 Sandy and 8 St Kilda players. Last time we had that sort of ratio was the final against Collingwood last year

Tom Lee will be sorely missed. Been rock solid this year.

Win this week and we get a home final. Lose and Williamstown lose, we still will get a home final.

Do you know if this home final (assuming Sandy finish 2nd) will actually be at TBBO or whether they'll play it at North Port like the VFL has a tendency of doing?

 

[Persevering Saint]

Our beloved still missed brother, stkildathunda , posted this team of VFL eligible players that could play finals, all Saints, no Zebs:

Could do worse. Throw in Jones and TDL (essentially still Sainters ), and yeah.

 

[aussierulesrules]

Unless we have a few more with unexpected injuries this week Sandy could be getting back any of Ray, Shenton, Saunders, Acres, McKenzie, Murdoch, Membrey and Sinclair for this weeks game!

 

[bird_man]

Our beloved still missed brother, stkildathunda , posted this team of VFL eligible players that could play finals, all Saints, no Zebs:

Could do worse. Throw in Jones and TDL (essentially still Sainters ), and yeah.

Have all those guys qualified?

Hopefully we look back at this team similar to Geelong 2002 VFL premiership team....