{"id":569451,"date":"2026-03-28T06:49:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T06:49:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/569451\/"},"modified":"2026-03-28T06:49:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T06:49:10","slug":"tasmania-devils-back-up-vfl-debut-with-second-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/569451\/","title":{"rendered":"Tasmania Devils back up VFL debut with second win"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tasmania have shown early signs they belong in the VFL, backing up success in their maiden game with a win in their first foray into the state’s north. <\/p>\n

A week after toppling Coburg in Hobart with a 10,634-strong sold-out crowd in attendance, the Devils got past Port Melbourne 15.11 (101) to 14.9 (93) in Launceston on Saturday. <\/p>\n

Editor’s Picks<\/a><\/p>\n

Stand-in skipper and former Essendon small forward Jye Menzie kicked four goals, including the match-sealer in the dying stages of the fourth quarter. <\/p>\n

The Devils had several set shots late in the piece but couldn’t land the killer punch, until Menzie pounced at the end of a slick movement. <\/p>\n

It was the club’s first game at University of Tasmania Stadium – in front of a crowd of 5013, with capacity capped at 8500 because of redevelopments. <\/p>\n

Tasmania have two seasons in the VFL and VFLW before their entry into the AFL and AFLW in 2028, and say the Victorian second-tier league is crucial in their build. <\/p>\n

“We’ve said we don’t want to come here and take part,” coach Jeromey Webberley said. <\/p>\n

“We want to try and finish in the top 10 and play finals footy in our first year, as well as develop individual talent. We feel like the team is in a really good spot.”<\/p>\n

Much like round one, the Devils lost major stats including disposals (353 to 318) and inside-50s (49 to 45), but came up trumps on the scoreboard. <\/p>\n

Menzie had 13 disposals, six tackles and five clearances to go with his goal haul. <\/p>\n

West Australian product Jed Hagan came to life late in the game with two crucial goals after starring in round one. <\/p>\n

The Devils are still without the services of captain and former Sydney Swans grand finalist Robbie Fox, who is out with a calf strain.<\/p>\n

Webberley said the group spoke about putting in a good showing after their maiden win. <\/p>\n

“We said phase one is over, let’s go into phase two. We’re speaking about staying present, staying in the moment,” he said. <\/p>\n

“There are some really good signs when we’re under pressure. Our group has been biting down on the mouthguard a bit for the bloke next to them.” <\/p>\n

The side ran out through a banner bearing the message “Undefeated, we’re off to a flyer. Please don’t listen to Eddie McGuire”, in a dig at the former Collingwood president’s comments about potentially delaying the Devils’ AFL entry. <\/p>\n

Tasmania played in the VFL from 2001-08, but this is their first endeavour as the Devils franchise. <\/p>\n

They started strongly, but Port Melbourne reeled off the final three goals of the first term for a 26-20 lead at the first break.<\/p>\n

The second quarter was a carbon-copy of the first – the Devils shot ahead with a run of four goals, including Menzie’s third. <\/p>\n

Port Melbourne rallied and hit a 49-46 lead by halftime, before the game was locked at 80-80 heading into the final quarter. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tasmania have shown early signs they belong in the VFL, backing up success in their maiden game with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":569452,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-569451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/569451","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=569451"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/569451\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/569452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=569451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=569451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=569451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}