Simon Goodwin under pressure: Melbourne star Christian Petracca looms as coach saviour

After two failed years, the expectations are high at Melbourne. But are the players good enough to deliver? And what happens if they don’t?

Can Christian Petracca lift the Dees and potentially save his coach? Picture: Michael Klein

Let’s hope Christian Petracca can thrive under the pressure.

So, too, Max Gawn, Jack Viney, Clayton Oliver and Steven May and all of them in this season of greater discovery, but Petracca’s the one.

He is Melbourne’s most destructive player.

He is the separator.

“I see an emerging Dustin Martin,” former Demons champion and Fox Footy commentator Gerard Healy told the Herald Sun.

No one can be “Dusty”, but there’s only a handful of players in the league who are Dusty-types.

They were selected No. 1 to No. 6 in the pre-season Top 50 — Martin, Patrick Dangerfield, Nathan Fyfe, Lachie Neale, Marcus Bontempelli, Petracca and Patrick Cripps.

Leigh Matthews said this week that group — the players who can win the ball, bust tackles and kick goals — were the most valuable.

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Christian Petracca during training this pre-season. Picture: Michael Klein

If last year was Act I of Petracca The Great, we eagerly await what he delivers in Act II, starting on Saturday against Fremantle at the MCG.

It is a team sport, and for sure every player makes a contribution, but within a team there is the one who has licence: At Melbourne, it is Petracca.

The Demons know that.

It’s why coach Simon Goodwin has devised a game style to extract every attacking fibre from his bullocking midfielder.

It is a simple plan: Be like Dusty. Don’t vigorously defend, but when we have the ball be on high-octane attack mode.

Fyfe has played that way for years and it’s why, when he spoke after winning his second Brownlow Medal, he thanked teammates for “picking up my man’’.

If Petracca succeeds in Dusty-like fashion, and there’s no reason why he shouldn’t, then Goodwin will smile more.

If Petracca’s output drops, then Goodwin’s position is far more precarious.

In a weird way, a stellar season from Petracca could save Goodwin from being sacked, which in turn could save chairman Glen Bartlett from being punted by members.

Because if it does go belly-up for the Demons, you get the feeling Bartlett would pull the trigger on the coach. And if that occurred, the season would be in turmoil and Bartlett, who is up for re-election at the end of the year, probably wouldn’t survive that fallout, either.

It’s a juicy game of ring-a-ring-rosy.

It’s more than curious the Goodwin-Bartlett relationship.

Last season after losing to Port Adelaide in Round 9, Bartlett launched at the team and the coaches.

“It was disgraceful. When you pull on a Melbourne jumper, we don’t give them out in Weeties packets,” he told the Herald Sun.

“You have to show respect for the jumper and the fans, and apart from a few blokes last night, it was an insipid performance. It wasn’t Melbourne-like and it won’t be tolerated going forward.”

Bartlett’s comments drew a mixed response.

Some said he had the right to shoot his mouth off and others thought it would destabilise the coach and players.

You would have thought the coach would have hated it.

As it was, the team’s fortunes changed and they came home 6-3.

Still, the hierarchy, perhaps even Goodwin, believed the coach needed more support.

Two years ago, Alan Richardson was employed to be Goodwin’s right-hand man and then over the summer, premiership coach Mark Williams was brought in and long-time assistant Adem Yze left Hawthorn to join his former club.

Melbourne president Glen Bartlett hugs coach Simon Goodwin after the Demons beat Greater Western Sydney in the final round of the 2018 season. Picture: Getty Images

There should be no excuses for Melbourne this season, although injuries to Ben Brown and Sam Weideman are not ideal. They won’t return until about Round 9.

Internally, the Demons have set their sights on, in their words, winning more than a final. Their ambition is the premiership.

Such lofty heights for an AFL club is not uncommon, but the view within looks vastly different to the view from outside.

The prevailing view outside is the Demons and Goodwin are on tenterhooks.

They are strong behind the ball led by May and Jake Lever, will reconfigure their midfield group and have been tremendously diligent on fixing their forward 50 woes.

The key to that area is Petracca. Think Dusty on Thursday night.

Martin’s split forward-mid was 60-40. Can Petracca, who turned 25 in January, elevate to near Dusty’s astonishing level?

Champion Data rated Petracca the No. 1 player in the league in 2020, followed by Nic Naitanui, Gawn, Fyfe and Neale.

Christian Petracca with Simon Goodwin. Picture: Michael Klein

Asked if he believed Petracca was ready to handle the greater expectation in 2021, Healy said: “I can’t answer that because ultimately you’ve got to get yourself into that position before you even know whether you can.

“Dusty is a rare beast as far as handling expectation.

“Dusty is a generational talent. Dusty may well be the best player of this century.

“But as far as use of the football and the capacity to do damage, Petracca’s in the elite category.

“He can do damage where as other players are flummoxed. He finds space and he’s destructive.

“The challenge for Goodwin is: Can he orchestrate a forward line which allows Petracca to be released into the midfield a bit more than he is.

“I suspect on Saturday he will have to play a bit more forward because of limitations to personnel.

“He’s a hell of player now, Petracca, and it’s exciting to see how far he can go.’’

Goodwin and Bartlett will be watching intently — starting Saturday.

Because if the Demons lose to the injury ravaged Dockers, straight away all of them are on notice.

Originally published as Simon Goodwin under pressure: Melbourne star Christian Petracca looms as coach saviour