THE DRIVE-BY SHOOTING

[Demonland 71,868]

THE DRIVE-BY SHOOTING by Whispering Jack

According to the script, Melbourne's season is over. In fact, it was over several months ago when the script was first written.

The story of the Demons' game against the Kangaroos at Etihad Stadium is one that could have been written several times over during season 2012. The team, severely depleted of talent and well behind the necessary standards of fitness and skills ran out and was ambushed by a far superior and more strongly focussed opposition. It was over before they even saw it coming.

In the absence of Melbourne's All Australian ruckman Mark Jamar, Todd Goldstein dominated from the outset to give his midfielders an armchair ride - as if they needed such an advantage against a far inferior on ball division. Ryan Bastinac had North's first goal on the board just one minute and thirty seconds into the game. By the fifteen minute mark they had four goals and change to nil. Colin Garland had the Demons' first score on the board nearly four minutes later - a point kicked under pressure. Drew Petrie's first and North's fifth came just after the 20 minute mark and Melbourne had yet to score a major.

The game was almost over but there was still time for the Demons to scrap their way to respectability, which they did for a while. Sam Blease soon kicked his team's first and midfielders Nathan Jones and Brent Moloney led the fightback by working their butts off. The deficit at half time was 25 points and Melbourne had even won the second quarter (by a solitary point)!

The third quarter was a repeat of the first although it took only 14 seconds for Adams to mop up from a spill and nail the first of five Kangaroo goals in a little over the first ten minutes of the second half. By that time, the Demons were done - victims of a drive-by shooting.

We did get to see Brad Green kick three goals and to demonstrate some of the brilliance that had him held in such esteem over a stellar career of 13 seasons and 250 games.

But junk time came early and North cruised its way to a 54-point win - it's tenth in a row over a Melbourne that simply had insufficient strength and run among its personnel, depleted by a long injury list particularly when compared with the hosts whose only player missing through injury has yet to make his AFL debut and is well outside its best 22.

It has been reported that Demon coach Mark Neeld said in the lead-up to this clash he felt the his team was "two years behind several of their rivals". That's a fair assessment and reflects on his team's current list which can be addressed by recruiting at the end of the year, by improvement during the off season and by a regeneration and return to health of many of its injured players.

The significance of Neeld's comment is underlined by the debate raging at more than one other club about what is necessary to improve a team's fitness and conditioning. We knew from the beginning, several months ago, that it was not possible to fast track the process whereby the fitness levels of Melbourne's list could reach the levels of the better sides in a short space of time. It's a process that will take at least two or three pre seasons of hard work and in the meantime, ambushes of the sort we have been witnessing this year will come back again and again.

Only when the team's fitness levels are at their optimum can we expect all players to display better skills and decision making. Only then will they be able to regularly get to the ball first, break through tackles and do all of the things that come naturally to all good teams.

In the meantime, the game is over and the season is over.

Melbourne 1.2.8 5.5.35 7.5.47 11.7.73

North Melbourne 5.4.34 9.6.60 15.10.100 19.13.127

Goals

Melbourne Green Sylvia 3 Blease Garland Howe Jones Martin

North Melbourne Petrie Tarrant 4 Adams Harvey Thomas 2 Anthony Bastinac Harper Macmillan Swallow

Best

Melbourne Jones Green Moloney Frawley Howe Macdonald

North Melbourne Harvey Gibson Wells Cunnington Swallow Goldstein

Injuries

Melbourne Nil

North Melbourne Adams (shoulder) McMahon (groin)

Changes

Melbourne Nil

North Melbourne Nil

Reports

Melbourne Nil

North Melbourne Nil

Umpires McBurney Armstrong Harris

Official crowd 20,816 at Etihad Stadium