Jake Melksham and Michael Hibberd open up on their exits from Essendon and joining Melbourne
IN an alternate universe, Jake Melksham and Michael Hibberd could easily still be at Essendon, playing alongside some of their best mates. Instead, while those mates are in Las Vegas, they are chasing the ultimate reward.
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JAKE Melksham’s pen was poised. He was ready to re-sign at Essendon.
It was deep in the 2015 season and Melksham was one of several Bombers coming out of contract.
The problem was, there was nothing to sign.
“There were 15 of us that didn’t have a contract and none of us were getting any traction in talks,” Melksham told the Herald Sun.
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“By chance when nothing was going on, I went to Simon Goodwin’s house for dinner.
“He asked, ‘Where are you at, what are you doing and where do you want to get to?’
“I thought about it and, by the time Essendon came back to me, I’d already made my decision.
“It was a sliding doors moment. If I had a contract tabled at Round 15 or 16 that year, I would’ve signed it.”
Michael Hibberd didn’t know what he wanted.
It was midway through 2016 — the year 34 Bombers were wiped out for taking drugs — and Hibberd was overseas obsessing over his next move.
After spending three weeks in Croatia with the banned Bombers, Hibberd and his partner sunned it up in Greece and Italy as his career hit a flashpoint.
“It was on my mind constantly,” Hibberd told the Herald Sun.
“It was 50-50 before I left and then I had a few conversations within the two days I got back to Melbourne and made the call.”
Hibberd had three tough phone calls to make.
First he dialled Essendon chief executive Xavier Campbell and then coach John Worsfold and list boss Adrian Dodoro.
“Goody was probably the last person I told,” Hibberd said.
“I went to Goody’s house and Jonesy (captain Nathan Jones) and Bernie Vince were there and I shook their hands and said, ‘I hope we can get the trade done, because I’ve told Essendon I want to leave’.”
In a nutshell, that is how Melbourne poached two Essendon stars in 12 months.
In a parallel universe the pair would’ve spent the past few weeks sinking beers at Las Vegas pool parties and bouncing between nightclubs on the strip.
“I’m in a group text with Hooksy (Cale Hooker), Tommy (Bellchambers), Jake and myself,” Hibberd said.
“I’d be with that crew for sure, they’re my boys. They’re sending me videos of how much fun they’re having, but they know I’m on a mission this finals campaign.”
Instead, the Demons locked Hibberd on to a half-back flank and Melksham on to a half-forward flank and haven’t looked back.
Essendon has not won a final since 2004 and the Demons duo are the only banned Bombers to taste September success.
“Both are leaders in their own right — Hibbo for the backs and Melky for the forwards,” Jones said.
“Melky in particular, because our forward group is quite young. Both are close friends of mine.”
The price paid for each player? A pick in the 20s, which was bumped into the 30s on draft night.
The Melksham deal was, in hindsight, foolishly scoffed at.
“I knew coming in that even Demons supporters were thinking, ‘Why have we got this bloke?’” Melksham, a top-10 pick in 2009, said.
“And I can remember people laughing and snubbing at the thought of me coming to Melbourne, because of the history over the past decade and not many believing what the list could do.
“But I’ve always believed in my ability. I played some good footy as a junior and then I struggled in my first few years as an AFL player.
“A lot of people think I played 114 terrible games for Essendon, which wasn’t the case.
“I did play some good footy there, it just wasn’t in the forward line. Forwards get a lot of rewards and there’s a lot of hype around forwards.
“You don’t really see a backman spoiling a ball on the back page of the paper.
“Guys like Jack Viney and the work the midfielders did (against Hawthorn) is tenfold compared to what some of us forwards are doing.”
Melksham was reborn as a forward at halftime of Queen’s Birthday in 2017.
“I was tagging (Scott) Pendlebury and we dropped the tag because we had to win, and so I found myself forward, played out of the goalsquare, and it worked,” he said.
“I haven’t stepped into one midfield stoppage since. I played forward as a kid, it’s not like it’s foreign to me.
“I’m not just pulling all this stuff out of my ass the last year and a half, I’ve always had a bit of goalsense.”
Melksham has slotted 51.27 in 33 ½ games spent in attack, including last week’s left-foot semi-final sealer, which was dobbed from 50m off one step.
Just as Demons hearts started to skip a beat — instead of beating true — it was a clutch goal and nerve-settler.
“And he’s got another level to go to,” Hibberd said.
“I feel he could be one of the better half-forwards in the competition next year. The way he’s playing right now he’s probably one of the most valuable players in our team.”
Drained by the drugs saga, Hibberd and Melksham were among the few Bombers to move on.
“I needed a change and a freshen up after everything that had gone on,” Melksham said.
“I felt a little bit stale in the environment there and that I wasn’t reaching the full potential I had. That wasn’t solely on the club or the ASADA thing, it was my doing as well.”
Essendon triumphantly celebrated its re-signings in 2016 — Dyson Heppell, Jobe Watson, Michael Hurley, Travis Colyer, Heath Hocking, Brent Stanton, Hooker and Bellchambers.
The Dons held onto them all … except for Hibberd.
“I was the only one that missed the year and left,” he said.
“The boys like Melky, Paddy (Ryder), (Jake) Carlisle, (Stewart) Crameri — they’d already left,” he said.
“I felt like I’d go to a new club hungrier, and I think I did. Maybe I was getting too comfortable at Essendon.”
In Hibberd the Demons knew they were acquiring a tough, old-fashioned footballer who would complement their defensive mix.
In Melksham the Demons have untapped a beautiful kick and creative forward who is among the AFL’s best one-on-one and score assist players.
The Essendon link is unquestionable.
Goodwin spent 2011-14 at the Bombers, his right-hand man Brendan McCartney was there in 2011 while development boss Matt Egan was at the Bombers from 2012-2016.
Even tactical guru Craig Jennings cut his teeth at Windy Hill.
“I’ve left a lot of my close mates at Essendon,” Hibberd said.
“But coming to a new club with one of my best mates (Melksham) and with so many familiar faces was a good reason to come over.
“It’s hard to put into a couple of words the impact Goody’s had on my career. He was huge for me when I was at Essendon, as a coach and a friend.
“He’s always been there and someone I can talk to whether it’s about footy or off-field. He’s a great man, a great people person and he’s always there for his players.”
As for Melksham?
“This club gave me a four-year deal and put faith in me and security,” he said.
“Having worked with Simon every day for my whole career at Essendon as midfield coach, I trust him with my life. I knew he wasn’t going to be blowing smoke up my rear end.”
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Originally published as Jake Melksham and Michael Hibberd open up on their exits from Essendon and joining Melbourne
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