In a season that many thought could not get any worse, the Devils' ineptness and uncompetitiveness plunged to levels not seen by a Tasmanian VFL team before on home soil.

Like naughty schoolboys, captain Scott Stephens, Ken Hall, Paul Koulouriotis and Bard Moran were marched out to try to explain the Devils' 10th consecutive loss.

What made this loss such a disgrace was the positive start in which the home side led by two goals in the second term, before conceding the next 15 without a score and eventually losing by 96 points, 22.13 (145) to 7.7 (49).

"We are embarrassed and sorry for our supporters who came today and paid their good, hard-earned money to watch us dish that shit up," Stephens said.

"Next time we play a home game down here, we will be playing with a spirit and fight for the contest. You have my word on that.

"You can tell by the amount of people we are getting through the gate (2152 at yesterday's game).

"A couple of years back in the Southern Stand there was people everywhere.

"Now they are walking out the gate at half-time because they are embarrassed and we are not doing anything to stand in the way to say `hey, stick around and watch us'."

Assistant coach Andrew Mellor said neither he nor head coach Daryn Cresswell would pass the buck.

"Myself and Daryn are not going to hide behind poor form," Mellor said, standing in at yesterday's press conference for Cresswell, who was on the North-West Coast.

"The buck stops with the coaches and we have to keep working just as hard as the players until we come up with the right mix. There is no doubt about it."

But Mellor said the staff members felt no pressure to hold their jobs.

"We have got the full support of the board here at Tassie and everyone knows while we can't accept losing that amount of games on the trot, there have been some circumstances that haven't always favoured us," he said.

"We are just thinking about the rest of this season and winning as many games as we can. We feel the pressure to win just as the players do."

TOP spot on the ladder is up for grabs when Geelong takes on Williamstown in the VFL tomorrow.

The Cats sit in third spot, but a win against the first-placed Seagulls will leapfrog them over Sandringham, which has the bye, back into first place.

The game was originally scheduled as a curtain-raiser to the Geelong-Sydney clash at Skilled Stadium, but was moved to Burbank Oval after the Geelong council decided to protect the surface.

VFL football manager Ben Waller said the shift would provide a great challenge to the Geelong team coming off a week's break.

``We haven't had a great record down at Williamstown and it's a huge game in terms of the VFL so if we can win there, we can win anywhere,'' he said.

``Obviously we're disappointed (to move) but the main thing is the ground (Skilled Stadium) is maintained. We understand when it is quite wet the ground gets turned up a bit.

``The ground copped  a fair bit of rain a couple of weeks ago when we played a curtain-raiser. There's a bit of rain forecast this week, so if we play a curtain-raiser, a TAC Cup game and then the national championships next week, the ground will cop a caning.

A calf injury has kept the former skipper out of the Bombers side since the loss to Port Melbourne by 40 points at TEAC Oval on Saturday, April 28.

But after extensive rehabilitation, Carter is set to make his long-awaited return when the Bombers take on Tasmania at Bellerive Oval in round 12 of the VFL this Saturday.

While he hasn't been out on the field, Carter has still had a significant role to play for the Bombers in his absence through his position as assistant coach to Matthew Knights.

'‘What I have been able to learn over the past six or seven weeks sitting in the coaches box has opened my eyes a little to the importance of effort and sticking to the game plan," Carter said yesterday.

‘‘Hopefully, that, and coupled with my fitness, I can perform okay this weekend.

 Not a drop of booze will pass players' lips until Cresswell and Co learn the cause of the Devils' second-half fade-outs this barren VFL season.

If they beat the Bendigo Bombers at Bellerive on Saturday, they can imbibe to their heart's content.

But if the fade-out persists, it could be a dry run to September.

"I imposed the latest alcohol ban after we lost to Geelong two weeks ago," Cresswell said yesterday.

"Our efforts in the second half of games have been very poor. We need to focus on our players' bodies and diets.

"We'll leave no stone unturned in our desire to get our fitness levels and preparation 100 per cent right. We've been falling away in the second half our our games -- that could be due to preparation and diet not allowing us to run out games.

"Over the next two weeks we will be taking skin folds and doing weight checks and looking after the body as well as we possibly can.

For a long time I have been asked can Tasmanian home games be shown on ABC2 well at last the answer is yes it can. Beginning with this round's game between Tasmania and Bendigo Bombers games will be shown on a Saturday Night after Late Night Legends although it will be on a weeks delay.

Here is the ABC/ABC2 Coverage Times for Round 12
SATURDAY JUNE 30
Frankston vs North Ballarat at Frankston Live in Victoria at 1pm
Tasmania vs Bendigo Bombers at Bellerive Delay in Tasmania at 3pm

ABC2 Replays(Nationwide)
Frankston vs North Ballarat on Wednesday July 4th at 11:30pm
Tasmania vs Bendigo Bombers on Sunday July 8th at 1:15am 

Going into the last term of their VFL clash with the Casey Scorpions, the scores were level at 47 apiece after an arm-wrestle for the first three quarters.

But the Bombers fell away in the final quarter when the game had to be won, losing 10.12 (72) to 8.8 (56) to end their three-game winning streak.

Bendigo's lack of ability to win games still up for grabs in the final quarter has been glaring since the start of the 2006 season.

Already this year, the Bombers have lost games to top sides Sandringham and Williamstown by seven points or less, which has cost them the chance to be pushing for a position in the all-important top four.

Instead, Bendigo is now sitting in ninth position on the ladder and with plenty of work still to do if it's to return to the finals.

Last year, the Bombers played in five games decided by less than a goal - and lost them all.