A poster on Bomberblitz is posting an assessment of every team for 2026 and this is his take on Melbourne.

People will no doubt quibble with some of his comments, but I think he does a pretty reasonable job for a non-MFC fan.

(Why was I looking at Blitz? Because there's not much footy news to be found and it pays to know your enemy.)

Melbourne

Coach – Steven King

2025 –

Points For – 10th
Points Against – 12th

Top 5 Best and Fairest

1 – Max Gawn
2 – Christian Petracca
3 – Kysaiah Pickett
4 – Jake Bowey
5 – Christian Salem

2025 Rising Star Noms

Harvey Langford (Rnd 3)
Xavier Lindsay (Rnd 7)

Ins – Oscar Berry, Max Heath, Changkuoth Jiath, Thomas Matthews, Brodie Mihocek, Riley Onley, Latrelle Pickett, Jack Steele, Kalani White, Xavier Taylor

Outs – Jack Billings, Kynan Brown. Tom Fullarton, Marty Hore, Judd McVee, Clayton Oliver, Christian Petracca, Oliver Sestan, Charlie Spargo, Will Verall, Taj Woewodin

My Prediction

Melbourne were one of the surprise packets of last season. In retrospect, their miserable year was probably always coming, the lunatics have been running that asylum for a while. 2026 has all the hallmarks of a reset and I am not sure a good one, they have taken a coach from Geelong after heavily courting Buckley. This has potential disaster written all over it.

The backline looks pretty similar to last season, they shopped May around but surprisingly few takers. Lever looks to have hit the injured phase of his career and they lack KP depth. They found one last year in Turner who was very handy. Bowey rediscovered some of his early career form. They lose McVee who had been very solid.

The midfield is really going to be interesting. No more throwing Petracca in the middle and the vague hope that Oliver will become a good player again is no longer teasing the fans. They found one in Windsor, Langdon will continue on the other wing with his very gradual decline that no one seems to have noticed. Bringing in Steele could be a masterstroke although him and Viney feel like the same player and I am not sure you carry two of them in modern football. Their midfield looks to have gone from a strength to a genuine concern.

The forward line has been broken even when they won their premiership. They have brought in Mihocek in a search for answers but I am not sure he is it. I understand why he took the deal he was offered but he is aging and wont be around next time this team is a contender. They will miss Petracca up forward and Van Rooyen looks like a player that looks like a player (without actually ever becoming a player). Pickett is a freak and they have brought in a stable mate to at least make them exciting to watch. The forward line remains as problematic as ever.

The ruck surely has to slow down at some stage. The way Gawn has stayed at the top of the game in a position when not many can is phenomenal. They have brought in Heath which is almost the exact opposite of Gawn in that he has never looked real flash or consistent. The coach seems an moneyball sort of selection. He will need time but looking at their recruits, I am not convinced that the Demons recognise the window has closed.

I don’t see the Demons as a challenger even for the playoffs this year. They have relied on too few for too much over the last couple of years and they are even thinner for talent this year. I am not sure they slide too much further although its possible. I think they finish in the 12-14 range.

Other than the comments re Langdon playing on a wing and last year's debacle being a surprise, that article sums up most of the concerns I have.

We'd have to win about 10 games to finish 12th, and that's a big ask for a side that has won just 12 of its past 38 games.

The only real solace in that season preview is at least we aren’t Essendon.

Fair and reasonable assessment. Only change I’d make is the suggested ladder position of 12-14; I think we’re more 12-16.

1 hour ago, Demonstone said:

I am not convinced that the Demons recognise the window has closed.

Really Bomberblitz? That we no longer have P&O onboard I think says the opposite.

Well... my take.... far too many 'narratives' based upon 'ruling' perceptions.

Reads to me more like 'tell me you dont really understand the change without directly saying such '

There's a lot of subtlety in what we're changing that slips straight through to the keeper if you're not nuanced in the real nature of Melbourne.

It's not that it's another team's pundit that's spruiking it's more because its simply someone not overly observant.

I’d be happy with 12th this year. Definitely the upper end of what we’re capable of this year.

I think they've underestimated the young talent. Sure it's going to take a while to find its feet, but it's going to be good.

Our midfield will clearly be a question mark this year but our midfield hasn't been firing for some time. Steele is a solid choice and will at least be a replacement for a 2025 Oliver

What's different for me is that we now have a lot of alternatives to our defensive structure added to good 2 way running wingmen. The defence should go back to being very solid.

How we bring the ball out of our backline will largely determine how the ball goes fwd.

If we change our ball movement to a similar style to Geelong - where you'd think King has all the IP - then we will look a lot more dangerous up front.

If we bomb the ball to Mihocek we'll be the same as we have been in the past 4 years. Nowhere.

Mihocek's goals in 2025 were about 80% lead to the ball carrier and mark. If we don't change then recruiting Mihocek will be a fail.

Creative fwd entries will be the key for us. The Jeff White analysis of Melb v Geelong was enlightening and small improvements to our fwd entries will see way better scoring. That's how we will get to 12+ wins.

I reckon we finish higher than West Coast Richmond and North Melbourne for a start. Also, I would think Collingwood and Port are possibles.

I would also think Carlton could drop. From here we are a chance.

I haven't even mentioned TWSNBN.

2 hours ago, Demonstone said:

Ins – Oscar Berry, Max Heath, Changkuoth Jiath, Thomas Matthews, Brodie Mihocek, Riley Onley, Latrelle Pickett, Jack Steele, Kalani White, Xavier Taylor

Outs – Jack Billings, Kynan Brown. Tom Fullarton, Marty Hore, Judd McVee, Clayton Oliver, Christian Petracca, Oliver Sestan, Charlie Spargo, Will Verall, Taj Woewodin

I don't think ive quite taken in just how much of a list-turn over we'e had in the off-season until seeing it spelt out like this. That amount of players has been unthinkable since Roos leading in to 2014. Which puts into perspective where we actually WERE at With Goodwin, in the cold light of day. We're somewhere in that 2014-2016 range again now and that's pretty damn exciting as a fan. Next years list changes will be even more interesting given they're going to be hugely dependent on what's going on at Casey and in the seniors (duh)

Go Dees!

PS. Embarrassingly googling who Oscar Berry is!

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by John Demonic

9 minutes ago, jnrmac said:

Our midfield will clearly be a question mark this year but our midfield hasn't been firing for some time. Steele is a solid choice and will at least be a replacement for a 2025 Oliver

What's different for me is that we now have a lot of alternatives to our defensive structure added to good 2 way running wingmen. The defence should go back to being very solid.

How we bring the ball out of our backline will largely determine how the ball goes fwd.

If we change our ball movement to a similar style to Geelong - where you'd think King has all the IP - then we will look a lot more dangerous up front.

If we bomb the ball to Mihocek we'll be the same as we have been in the past 4 years. Nowhere.

Mihocek's goals in 2025 were about 80% lead to the ball carrier and mark. If we don't change then recruiting Mihocek will be a fail.

Creative fwd entries will be the key for us. The Jeff White analysis of Melb v Geelong was enlightening and small improvements to our fwd entries will see way better scoring. That's how we will get to 12+ wins.

They are definitely working on a different, much improved delivery . Not just the physical aspect but the mindset governing it.

Melbourne right now is a pundit's dream. You could say just about anything and make a case for it. Except possibly 'everything will click in 2026'.

Our defensive unit will either wither with age and injury while young talls stall their development, or there will be a terrific overlap of rejuvenated and motivated veteran core providing stability for dynamic successors.

Our midfield will either be crushed under the weight of effort to provide a sustained full unit, or our two veteran warriors will provide the guardianship and defensive solidity for an eminently complex and unpredictable mix of heights, styles and strengths from an enthusiastic young group which believes in their future together.

Our forward line is either built around a young tall who plateaued early and will never quite be effective at AFL level, a forward-ruck who isn't quite the real thing, unfit smalls, and some ancient veterans who can barely move even when they do get on the park... or we have put together a critical mass of some of the smartest and most experienced forward-line movers who can guide our young highly mobile talls to make the most of their different instincts and a frightening collection of smalls who can appear anywhere without warning and will hunt anything that moves.

Our ruck is, of course, a bit of a Gawn or bust situation.

Up in the box and on the bench, and on training days, our coaches are either a brilliantly selected cadre of specialists under a senior coach who has been nurturing a vision and planning how to communicate it for years, or it is a grab bag of whoever happened to be available on the cheap and willing to work with that big dork Stephen.

So, yeah, that about covers it. Predicted finish from 19th (behind Tassie) to 4th, I'd say.

Stars help you win big games and flags.

If you can defend you will always be in games

If you have a squad who buy in and understand the game plan enough to implement it over 4 quarters and you are are going to be a reasonable side, if a few of your players take the next step and you move to being a good side

23 players working for each other with more of a WE over ME philosophy like we had in 21 and no matter who the 23 are picked once they are on the same page and honest players 8-10 games is possible.

The ball movement desired if it works without being burned on turn over and having mids prepared to hold structure, avoid all getting drawn into the honeypot, commit to the 1%ers and have a desire to run hard both ways will see a side who is pushing for a spot in the wildcard

Going to be an interesting watch