Paul Roos has no plans to extend his stay at Melbourne beyond next season

PAUL Roos has ruled out extending his stay at Melbourne, adamant his rejuvenation of the battling club will be complete by the end of next season.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MAY 16: Paul Roos the coach of the Demons talks to his players during the round seven AFL match between the Hawthorn Hawks and the Melbourne Demons at Melbourne Cricket Ground on May 16, 2015 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

PAUL Roos has ruled out extending his stay at Melbourne, adamant his rejuvenation of the battling club will be complete by the end of next season.

The Demons were cut to ribbons by Hawthorn on Saturday, with ex-Hawks president Jeff Kennett calling for the Demons board to resign.

Kennett told the Herald Sun he stood by his criticism as a paid-up Melbourne member, calling on president Glenn Bartlett to have a bigger profile.

He said the Demons were “a club without definition” and could not squander the chance to grow while Roos and CEO Peter Jackson remained.

Roos yesterday was adamant the club was on track, happy to move on once he hands over the reigns to successor Simon Goodwin.

“I finish at the end of next year and I am 100 per cent confident in the staff we have here and the development programs,’’ he said.

“By the end of next year the club will be in fantastic shape if not before that. I have got a pretty clear plan about what we want to do at the footy club.

“We are set up well for the future and to play better in the here-and-now

“Someone shot me Jeff’s twitter (messages). The players were really disappointed last night at the Foundation Heroes function but the fans see the direction we are going in.”

Nathan Jones after the loss to Hawthorn. Picture: Getty

Kennett said Bartlett had a non-existent profile and was an example of Melbourne’s lack of spark.

“They must be the most frustrating team in the league for their members. Melbourne started losing their way in the Gutnik years when they lost their home-ground advantage at the MCG.

“The club doesn’t have a real presence and the board doesn’t function well. The president might be a wonderful chap but he is unknown here in Melbourne and has elected to take a very low profile.

“Eddie McGuire and Frank Costa and Ian Dicker all came in and played a very major role publicly in positioning the club.”

Roos said on 3AW Chris Dawes’ midweek proclamation that Hawthorn were “gettable” had clearly backfired.

“I don’t know why players do that. Sometimes you scratch your head. I don’t know if Clarko (Alastair Clarkson) needed any more ammunition but if he did Dawesy provided it.”

Geelong premiership captain Cameron Ling yesterday questioned Jack Watts for his decision not to put his hand up to play.

“My mind is as a player I wanted to play every single game. I can’t see that as a positive,’’ he said.

But Roos said Watts had been aware in team meetings that he wasn’t pulling his weight, so needed to regain confidence through the VFL.

“He said he did want to play — I am desperate to play for Melbourne but I am letting my teammates down.

“The fans don’t understand how much players hurt when they are playing poorly. Jack wants to help the team and felt the best thing was to go back and play and get into form.”

Originally published as Paul Roos has no plans to extend his stay at Melbourne beyond next season