TIMING

[Demonland 73,140]

by Scoop Junior

Timing is a key aspect of any sport. Ask any golfer, batsman or tennis player what the most important part of their swing is and the unanimous answer will be their timing. As the home-and-away season draws to a close and finals football and warm spring weather is on the horizon, it is the clubs that have timed their run to perfection that will be best placed to take home the 2006 premiership.

But no matter what strategy is employed in order to meet these timing requirements, injuries can tear apart the best-laid plans. As Melbourne prepared for its crucial Round 19 clash with Sydney and a hopeful return to form after the Carlton debacle, injuries unfortunately prevented them from fielding a side capable of knocking over the reigning premier.

With the class of Byron Pickett, Aaron Davey, Travis Johnstone and Russell Robertson (not to mention the club's number one small defender in Matthew Whelan) on the sidelines and Cameron Bruce under duress with a corked thigh, the Demons had no real option but to resort to a dour struggle. Of course, as is so often the case in big games, the opposition was at virtual full strength. In an even competition, injuries alone can be a significant factor in deciding the fate of a game between 3rd and 4th on the ladder.

Melbourne put up a credible effort; restricting the Swans to a moderate total. The Dees' hardness and desperation was much improved from the Carlton game and the tackling was back to its best. Defensively, the Demons were on their game and made Sydney work hard for their goals.

The backline stood tall, with Ben Holland doing a reasonable job on Hall. While Hall kicked 3 and uncharacteristically dropped some easy marks, Holland competed well and held his own in the one-on-one contests. Nathan Carroll was solid on O'Loughlin, keeping the dangerous Swan relatively quiet. In his return match, Ryan Ferguson matched up on Grundy and battled hard. It was disappointing to see Grundy lead Fergy to the ball and out-body him on occasions, exposing the Demons' lack of body strength. Ferguson took an extremely courageous mark in the third term and displayed his usual lack of regard for self-preservation, but he remains clearly behind the other key defenders in his ability to shut down a key forward.

Jared Rivers was the pick of the defenders. He allowed his opponent in O'Keefe plenty of space, however, he zoned off to repel many Swans' attacks. O'Keefe plays a high half forward role and at times is almost another midfielder. Rivers didn't let himself get dragged away from defensive 50 and his courage in backing into the pack and marking on numerous occasions was one of the few highlights of the day.

The midfield also contributed to the impressive defensive performance from the Demons. Who else but Junior led the way with an astonishing 14 tackles. One of them, a goal-saving tackle on Schneider in the goal square, was an absolute gem. Brock McLean, Clint Bartram, Nathan Jones and others applied great pressure around the ball which restricted the flow of ball into the Sydney forward line.

While the defensive aspects were performed admirably, Melbourne left a lot to be desired in terms of its attacking performance. With the level of class out of the side, the Dees were always going to struggle to conjure up a winning score. However, two of the classier players in the team in Brad Green and Adem Yze had days they would rather forget. Green was hard at it but his usual clean disposal was not on show, replaced instead with rushed handballs and errant kicks. Yze, on the other hand, didn't appear to show the commitment levels required of a senior player. Quite simply, he had to step up with so many players out. His body language was poor and his refusal to take a hit for the team inexplicable. Perhaps he is carrying an injury, in which case he probably shouldn't be out there. But time and time again, he kicked the ball out of the pack blindly instead of assessing his options, almost in a bid to avoid a crunching tackle. His out on the full early in the last term and the consequent goal to his direct opponent in McVeigh summed up his frustrating performance.

Jeff White also had a shocker, carved up in the ruck by former understudy Jolly. Mark Jamar offered little when thrown into the ruck and his lack of mobility around the ground did not really help the cause. The Demon rucks have been pretty good this year, though, and they should bounce back from this sub-par performance.

With the attacking side of their game shot to bits, the forwards had very little chance to make an impact. A mere 30 inside 50s was evidence of this. The skipper was inspirational, throwing himself around and setting a great example of working hard against the tide. He kicked four goals and was a constant threat. Brad Miller and Lynden Dunn returned to the side and it appeared to be one too many as the Dees started with Jamar up forward, relegating Dunn to the interchange bench. Miller took a few strong grabs but was fairly quiet, while Dunn did not see much game time and as a result struggled to get into any rhythm. It will be interesting to see which one survives with the imminent return of Robbo. Shannon Motlop worked hard but will make way for Davey and Pickett in the coming weeks, while there was little else for Melbourne fans to be excited about up forward.

Thankfully, a young bloke by the name of Matthew Bate provided some excitement on a dour day for the Demons. He wasn't as dominant as last week but showed that he wasn't out of his depth against one of the best man-on-man sides in the competition. He could do a lot worse than to watch some tapes of Adam Goodes. The Sydney star was clearly BOG and was too quick, tall and strong for the opposition. Bate has similar attributes to Goodes: both are tall, powerful, strong overhead, quick and mobile. While comparisons to a Brownlow Medallist may seem a bit rich for some, there is no doubt they play a similar style of game and Bate could learn a lot from the way Goodes goes about his footy.

So as we reach the home straight of the home-and-away season, the question on many lips is has Melbourne failed to get its timing right again? The next three weeks will reveal all. There are, however, mitigating circumstances this time around. The Dees have lost three of four, but only one of those losses was a disaster. The Dockers are red-hot at the moment (and the game was on their turf) while the Swans are a superbly drilled side and we faced them without a host of important players.

Now is definitely not the time to panic as the Demons are still very much alive. 3rd appears out of reach, so it appears that a finish from 4th to 7th is most likely. Top four is still possible but three wins may be required, while 5th may not be such a bad position to launch a finals campaign from, provided a Victorian team finishes 4th. 5th will probably require two wins at the least, which makes this week's game against the Kangaroos an absolute must win. A win will see the team head down the highway to Geelong with some restored confidence and the knowledge that they knocked off the Cats down there last year. A loss, however, could be a fatal blow for the side's prospects in 2006. It will rightly raise queries about the mental strength of the side and comparisons with the last two years will be made. While some in the media are already making such comparisons, it seems pre-mature, given the circumstances of the past month of footy. Whatever the case, a win this week is imperative in the quest to get the side’s timing right before Spring rolls around.

Melbourne 4.0.24 7.1.43 9.2.56 10.3.63

Sydney 4.2.26 8.4.52 11.6.72 14.11.95

Goals Neitz 4 Bate Brown Bruce Godfrey Jones Ward

Best Rivers Neitz Bate McDonald

Injuries Ferguson (knee) Ward (ankle)

Umpires James Meredith Goldspink

Crowd 43,794 at the MCG