Melbourne Demons facing a disciplinary crisis

THE Melbourne Demons have been slammed for widespread issues at the club, as players find trouble on and off the field.

Swans players wrestle with Tomas Bugg of the Demons.

AFL 360 co-host Mark Robinson thinks the Melbourne Demons have a widespread disciplinary problem, highlighted by Tomas Bugg’s incident with Sydney Swans opponent Callum Mills on Friday Night.

Bugg will face the AFL tribunal after he landed a punch on the chin of the Swans’ star early in Friday night’s clash between the two sides.

The Demons’ midfielder is facing a lengthy stint on the sidelines, becoming the latest Melbourne star to face punishment from the tribunal.

Tom Papley of the Swans remonstrates with Tomas Bugg of the Demons.

Robinson feels the club is facing a very real disciplinary problem.

“The thing about Melbourne though is that’s the fourth player this year to get suspended for throwing punches,” Robinson said.

“I know Simon Goodwin (Melbourne coach) wants to play on the edge, because all good teams play on the edge, but they’ve lost control.

“They’ve lost knowledge of where the edge is, because a lot of them are on the other side.

Tomas Bugg has been reported for this strike on Callum Mills. #AFLDeesSwans pic.twitter.com/ADWjAjpC5e

— AFL (@AFL) June 30, 2017

But Robinson has slammed Bugg for his actions against the Swans, saying he will be forced to accept a harsh penalty from the AFL, given current events surrounding the tribunal.

“He got ahead of himself, Tomas Bugg,” Robinson said.

“We were all laughing a couple of weeks ago, about what a pest he is, and he couldn’t handle it.

“So he took it to another level, and it was a bad level and he knows that. He’s going to wear about five, six weeks.”

To add to their on-field disciplinary problems, the Demons were forced to stand down four players. The players were not made available for senior selection for breaking club rules.

Jay Kennedy-Harris, Ben Jennedy, Dean Kent and Jake Spencer were ruled ineligible for selection against the Swans, after the quartet engaged in a drinking session midweek.

Simon Goodwin, Senior Coach of the Demons.

Robinson’s AFL 360 co-host Gerard Whateley admitted Melbourne are obviously struggling to see players adopt a strong club culture.

“They’re not the team that Goodwin preaches that they want them to be,” Whateley told AFL 360.

“It takes a while to become that, before you are entitled to skip the words and judge the actions, and right now it doesn’t match what Goodwin is preaching internally or externally.

“It’s on them to sort that out and we see developing teams go through this.

“That’s when the penny drops and the selfishness is taken out and you realise you don’t indulge in the personal moments, you indulge in the good of the team.”

Originally published as Melbourne Demons facing a disciplinary crisis