ON THE ROAD BACK

by Scoop Junior

The trip back up the highway after an outing at Skilled Stadium often an enjoyable one. This ground that is regularly the location of some of Melbourne's poorest performances yesetrday witnessed its best under new coach Dean Bailey. The result was the same as every other competitive match the Demons have played in this year, but this time there was some genuine reason for optimism (as well as a genuine reason to stay beyond three quarter time). While the drive home was in no way joyous, at least Melbourne fans could be proud of their team's effort against the odds.

The match began in a fashion not totally unexpected. Melbourne came out hard and fired up after two disgraceful performances while Geelong was inevitably thinking the game would be a walk in the park. Three quick goals unsettled the locals and sprung the Cats into action. Their cause was greatly assisted however by some of the horrendous Demon errors that have been on show far too often in season 2008. Nathan Carroll’s attempted rushed behind was at best a schoolboy error and at worst, well let's not go there, while Nathan Jones’ errant kick across half back gifted Geelong another easy goal. The Cats led by a goal at quarter time, which was a blow to a Melbourne side that had worked hard and played the better football of the first term.

As Geelong started to wrest control in the middle and hit the scoreboard early in the second term, it appeared as though the floodgates were about to open. But unlike previous rounds, the Demons held firm and worked their way back. With the defence holding steady, Cameron Bruce, Brad Miller and Lynden Dunn found the big sticks and the Dees only trailed by 17 points at half time.

By that time, the small contingent of Demon fans on hand had already seen their team’s best performance yet for the season, though that only underlines how poor Rounds 1 and 2 were. We were resigned to the fact that a solid half of footy against the reigning premiers was probably all we were going to see for the day.

However, Melbourne did not intend to follow the script and began the second half like the first, closing to within five points midway through the term thanks partly to two neat goals from Cale Morton. Sensing the boilover of the century, Geelong lifted a cog, rallying late in the term to secure a comfortable four-goal advantage at the last change. In truth, the Demons never really looked like hauling in the Cats but they refused to lie down in the last quarter. A couple of times it seemed as though the home side would run away with a big win but the Dees scrapped it out, kicked a few late goals and kept the margin to a respectable 30 points.

While it is another loss and the Demons now sit 0-3, for the first time this year there were some real positives to take out of a game. In fact, more than just a few. Brock McLean returned to form with an excellent performance. His first half was exceptional, gathering 22 possessions, most of them in the heat of the action, before Cameron Ling shut him down in the second half. He was smarter with his ball use this week, dishing off when under pressure rather than trying to break tackles. His hard work at the stoppages kept the ball rolling and helped ensure a competitive display from the Demons.

Paul Wheatley played a good game rebounding off the wing and half back. His run and long kicking were features of his game but he did make a few errors which led to Geelong goals. Wheatley’s style suits the modern game and he really should be reaching the peak of his career. He needs to produce more of these types of games rather than them being mere flashes in the pan.

Cameron Bruce was another terrific performer, nullifying the dangerous Steve Johnson and running off him to not only link up with team mates but also kick three goals. Bruce is without doubt one of the better one-on-one players in the AFL – he rarely gets beaten in such contests. With the added abilities to read the play and know when to leave his man, Bruce really is ideally sited for a defensive role against mid-sized forwards. I believe his best footy is off a half back flank.

Probably the biggest surprise packet for the day (other than the final margin) was Paul Johnson, whose improvement continues each week. Johnson has always been a big man with good little man skills and apart from Dean Cox you would rarely find a ruckman with such clean hands below his knees and pinpoint foot skills. These were on show down at Geelong, as well as strong overhead marking and competitive ruckwork, aspects of Johnson’s game that have let him down in the past. With his rising confidence, Johnson is getting more and more involved in matches and is starting to make more of a an impact. His form has been a rare highlight for the Demons so far this year.

The other big positive was the impressive performances of first-year players – first gamer Austin Wonaeamirri and first round draft selection Cale Morton. Aussie displayed a great appetite for the contest and his chasing and harassment helped provide improved forward pressure. He is very clean below his knees and is calm and composed with the ball in hand. Most importantly, he makes good decisions and executes well. He doesn’t have the raw pace and sheer excitement of Aaron Davey, but appears to have more grunt and will hopefully prove a handy small forward for the side. Morton is a natural footballer and displays incredible awareness for such a young player. Like Aussie, he is composed when in possession and makes sound decisions. This bloke has the class; he just needs to put on a hell of a lot of weight. He does need to improve his attack on the ball but this should come with added strength and experience.

The return of Jared Rivers was another positive, his calming presence just makes the back line look so much more settled. Clint Bartram displayed some of the form of 2006 with his hard running and tackling a highlight. And the game style was vastly improved, with Melbourne making better use of handball, running in numbers and generally making better decisions.

In the end though, as Bailey said, his team lost the game and now sits at 0-3. Despite the encouraging signs, there was still plenty to tear the hair out about (at least for the fans if not the coach). Some of the skill execution at times was woeful, with the Demons missing targets 15 metres away and kicking the ball out on the full despite a lack of pressure from the opposition. Against a quality side like Geelong, you get punished for such mistakes.

Russell Robertson's season continues to stall. While delivery to the forward line has been poor, Robbo is becoming too one-dimensional and the fact that players these days need to be able to move around, run and play different roles means that he must be on thin ice on the selection front.

Jeff White worked hard and found plenty of the ball but made too many errors for a senior, experienced player. With Johnson’s form, he needs to step up to retain the number one ruck title.

Colin Garland is young and inexperienced, but like Issac Weetra he is clearly not ready for AFL football. He seems unsure of himself, doesn't know when to go and when to hold back and just doesn’t have any presence out on the ground. He needs to gain some confidence at a lower level.

But without doubt the biggest disappointment of the day for mine was Colin Sylvia. The bloke who was taken at pick three in 2003 has delivered very little in his time at the club. His career is five years in, he had a good pre-season and should be starting to become a more than dependable player for the club but he's anything but that. He simply doesn't work hard enough to get into space or in close around the stoppages, which means his disposal count is always around the 10-15 mark which is simply not good enough for a player of his talents. He only seems to be interested when the threat of a fight breaks out. Someone needs to tell Col to pull his finger out because his career is going nowhere fast. His attitude seems to be a problem and perhaps he needs some time down at Sandy to think about his future. I would challenge him to step up next week against North but if he fails to perform again then he can spend some time in the VFL.

What will be interesting is whether this was a flash in the pan competitive performance or whether the Demons are on the road back to resembling a senior professional football side. There's really no excuse not to put in that sort of effort week in, week out. North Melbourne will be another challenging game next week, but if the team can play with the same attitude and keep improving its style of football, then it can regain its lost respect. If that happens then supporters can at least be proud of their team, look to the future with some sense of optimism and perhaps the club might even be able to emulate its feats of two years ago when it picked itself off the bottom after a poor 0-3 start and took part in the finals.

Geelong 4.4.28 8.11.59 13.14.82 16.16.112

Melbourne 3.4.22 6.6.42 10.8.68 12.10.82

Goals

Geelong Hawkins 5 Johnson Ling Mooney 2 Ablett Blake Chapman Milburn Stokes

Melbourne Bruce 3 Dunn Morton 2 Green Miller Neitz Wheatley White

Best

Geelong Corey Bartel Hawkins Ling Chapman Taylor

Melbourne Bruce McLean Wheatley P Johnson Morton Bartram

Injuries

Geelong Nil

Melbourne Nil

Reports Nil

Umpires Wenn Sully Ryan

Official crowd 23,569 at Skilled Stadium.