From the vault

The compromised AFL fixture will get another test this week with the first lot of teams getting a bye after only two matches. Despite this Round 2 starts off with two cracking games as the Hawks host the Swans at the G on Thursday Night and then on Friday Night the Crows host the Bulldogs at Adelaide Oval. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons?

The dominant storyline coming out of Round One for Sunday’s clash at Optus Stadium centres on the influence of the big men. The spotlight naturally falls on two elite ruckmen who, five years ago, shared the stage in Melbourne’s memorable premiership triumph.

As part of the effort to trim the runtime of the regular podcast, we’ve been looking at which segments could be reshaped without losing what makes them valuable. One segment that naturally came into focus was Binman’s Stats Files. Not because it isn’t important; quite the opposite. It’s become such a substantial and much-loved part of the show that it deserves a little room to breathe.

After a stunning victory over the Saints in the first round of the Season the Demons head over to Perth to take on the Dockers who choked in their first match against the Cats. Who comes in and who goes out?

One of the big stories of the AFL off-season was the spending spree of Melbourne’s Round 1 opponent, St Kilda. They splashed out heavily, first to retain Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera - the hero of last year’s epic come-from-behind miracle victory -turning him into a $2 million man. They then effectively took out an expensive overdraft to recruit a string of expensive players from other clubs. It was a risky investment strategy and, although it’s still early days, it certainly failed to pay off in Sunday’s season opener, with much of the glitter turning to fool’s gold.

Never in doubt!!! In Steven King’s first game at the helm of the Melbourne Football Club, the Dees outlasted Saints in a wild, momentum-swinging thriller at the MCG, running out 13-point winners.