GHOSTS OF THE PAST by The Oracle

[Demonland 64,692]

Melbourne and Richmond are seeking to take ownership of the Anzac Day eve time slot but the clubs that had arguably the two longest football dynasties of the post war years each have a lot of work to do if they want their meetings to attain blockbuster status.

The Tigers at least have been visible on the Friday night stage from time to time but for the Demons, it's almost two years since they graced an AFL venue on a Friday night. The reason the AFL gives for this apparent aberration is Melbourne's poor form but that excuse doesn't really hold because Carlton is a regular feature on the Friday night scene despite recent inferior form to that of Richmond and barely superior to Melbourne.

Still, the fact remains that the Demons and the Tigers are burdened by their own ghosts of the past.

They meet at the MCG on Friday night with long histories of modest achievement over the past thirty years. It's a long time since either won a finals match and while the Tigers have made it to the top eight twice in a row, they have not been particularly impressive in reaching that status. So far this year, neither team has set the world on fire with all their victories recorded against others who are currently winless.

On paper, the Tigers look the winners. They demolished a rudderless Brisbane team that gave up without a yelp (and certainly not a roar) and they have the midfield weapons that could overpower the Demons in a similar fashion to how the Giants and the Crows have managed to fight back against them after poor starts in the past two games.

Melbourne simply cannot afford to lose this game and Friday night will therefore be a true test of this team.

THE GAME

Richmond v Melbourne on Friday 24 April 2015 at 7.50pm at the MCG

HEAD TO HEAD

Overall Richmond 103 wins Melbourne 73 wins Drawn 2

At MCG Richmond 68 wins Melbourne 61 wins Drawn 1

Past five meetings Richmond 4 wins Melbourne 1 win

The Coaches Hardwick 0 wins Roos 1 win

MEDIA

TV - Channel 7 and Fox Footy Channel at 7.30pm (live)

Radio - Triple M 3AW SEN ABC ABC Grandstand

THE BETTING

Richmond to win - $1.30 Melbourne to win - $3.50

THE LAST TIME THEY MET

Melbourne 14.7.91 defeated Richmond 9.20.74 Round 9, 2014 at the MCG

Nathan Jones and Jack Watts were the heroes for Melbourne and while it was lucky to strike an inaccurate Richmond on this occasion, the team took advantage of its good fortune and powered home to a well fought win.

THE TEAMS

RICHMOND

B: David Astbury, Jake Batchelor, Alex Rance
HB: Bachar Houli, Nick Vlastuin, Nathan Drummond
C: Brandon Ellis, Trent Cotchin, Kamdyn McIntosh
HF: Steven Morris, Shane Edwards, Anthony Miles
F: Jack Riewoldt, Ben Griffiths, Sam Lloyd
FOLL: Ivan Maric, Dustin Martin, Taylor Hunt
I/C: Matt Arnot, Nathan Gordon, Shaun Grigg, Matt McDonough
EMG: Todd Elton, Ben Lennon, Ty Vickery

IN: Matt Arnot, Nathan Drummond, Matt McDonough

OUT: Chris Knights (hamstring), Troy Chaplin (calf), Chris Newman (back)

NEW: Nathan Drummond

MELBOURNE

B: Colin Garland, Lynden Dunn, Neville Jetta
HB: Jeremy Howe, Tom McDonald, Christian Salem
C: Daniel Cross, Nathan Jones, Heritier Lumumba
HF: Ben Newton, Jesse Hogan, Jeff Garlett
F: Dean Kent, Chris Dawes, Jack Watts
FOLL: Mark Jamar, Dom Tyson, Bernie Vince
I/C: Angus Brayshaw, Jay Kennedy-Harris, Viv Michie, Aaron vandenBerg
EMG: Jack Grimes, Cameron Pedersen, Jimmy Toumpas

IN: Viv Michie

OUT: Sam Frost (injured)

Almost every preview of every game played at this level starts with the adage about the result being determined by the outcome of the midfield contests and for years it has been said that Melbourne is in the third world when it comes to its on ball division. A large measure of this is due to to its monumental recruiting and player development failures over the past decade and this was clearly recognised Paul Roos when he assumed the coaching reins.

It shouldn't be underestimated that almost the totality of the club's recruiting since the end of the 2013 season has been aimed at improving the club's midfield stocks and a look at the side for the vital round four match bears this out.

Moreover, it's clearly evident that over the past 25 matches, Melbourne's output in terms of winning contested possessions has Melbourne improved dramatically and, in this game - the club's first on a Friday night under Roos - provides it with the opportunity to show the football world in its main showcase time slot that it has the team to provide a contest not only in the midfield but all over the ground.

The key contest will no doubt be the one between the two skippers. Hard nosed Nathan Jones hasn't been at his dominant best yet this season and he faces a big challenge against the talented and skillful Trent Cotchin but in a sign of the times, Jones no longer has to be THE dominant on baller because he has so much more support in this area and all over the ground than he did, say two years ago. He now has Bernie Vince and Dom Tyson. He has the enigmatic Heritier Lumumba, the young Angus Brayshaw, the canny Daniel Cross and the unknown warriors Ben Newton and Aaron vandenBerg all floating around to provide support and variety.

The ruck duels should also be pivotal with Mark Jamar and Ivan Maric in good form. Whichever of these two gets on top and wins possession around the ground will go a long way to determining the dominance of his team's midfield.

The contest between Tom McDonald and Jack Riewoldt should also be worth watching as well as the battle in Melbourne's forward line where Jesse Hogan is quickly catching the eye for his tireless running and strength in the marking contests. If he and Jeff Garlett can capitalise on the improvement in supply to the forward line and find their targets going goal wards, the Demons could win their first Friday night game in several years and start their movement out of the ghostly time slots they usually occupy on most weekends during the football season.

Melbourne by 15 points

[CBDees 3,162]

I reckon that we will beat them even if we are playing "away" for the third consecutive week!

p.s. Shame that it is not a "home game" as we have won all our home games so far this year. (Bring on Freo next week!)