MELBOURNE 22.12 (144) def GWS GIANTS 15.13 (103)
IN the face of the fiery hell burning below, Melbourne has exorcised their Demons by unleashing a record-breaking 12-goal last quarter haul to overcome Greater Western Sydney.
It marks the highest ever last quarter score in the history of the club.
Demons coach Mark Neeld can now breathe a sigh of relief for his job security as journalists circled the MCG like a flock of seagulls with the smell of fresh bait today.
But despite the inconsistency in a game that was littered with errors, the lowly Demons found mental fortitude when staring down the barrel at three quarter time.
“There was a little bit about the style and that we needed to keep going. I certainly made mention to them about the spirit that the playing group has shown over the last however-long amount of time,” Neeld said after the game about his message to the team at the final change.
“I touched on that we have thirty minutes here to work the way we have been working in training and really dig deep.”
Lifted by senior figures Colin Sylvia (19 possessions) and Nathan Jones (28 possessions), the club found respite in relentless tackling and forward 50 assaults.
Co-captains Jack Trengove (22 possessions) and Jack Grimes (29 possessions) also shrugged critics aside for another week leading by example with impressive on-field displays.
Regardless of the last term, the Giants continued to show the football world their potential – with arch-nemesis Tom Scully (26 possessions) delivering against his old side through a chorus of jeers.
However news is not all good for the Demon faithful. Forward Mitch Clark may have suffered another foot injury. But with the return of Max Gawn (2 goals, 6 marks), the tall timber could prove a likely and reliable replacement up forward in the weeks to come.
Meanwhile, injury-plagued forward Setanta O’hAilpin returned for the Giants. He troubled Demon defenders early and finished with five majors for the game.
But there are nagging questions that the Demons will continue to contend with in the coming week. And any respite gained by the win could certainly be short lived.
How can the Demons prevent themselves jumping from one extreme to another each week? Against the Giants today they broke their biggest last quarter score record for the club. Two weeks ago they suffered their worst ever loss at the MCG. A greater consistency should be expected and demanded. No excuses.
It seems off-field questions also remain. Can the Demons lift the dark cloud of the growing ASADA drug investigation after the club was issued with a “please explain” this week?
Can they mirror Essendon’s example by letting their on-field performances tell the story? Can the new interim CEO Peter Jackson lift some of their woes?
But through this adversity the Demons must show their fans consistency no matter the instability and speculation off-field. It should not come to almost writing coaching obituaries.
The Demons have shown they can play patches of good football. Their task to put together complete performances continues next week against Brisbane.
Here are the match highlights:
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