AFL 2024: Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin says Max Gawn will keep improving after fracture

Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin says his side needs to hold its nerve as he hopes for “another fluctuation” in the finals race.

Melbourne captain Max Gawn will improve over the next few weeks as Melbourne mounts a last-ditch bid to play finals, says coach Simon Goodwin. Picture: Morgan Hancock / Getty Images

Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin says Max Gawn will be limited at training this week but “is just going to get better” as he leads the Dees’ increasingly desperate finals bid.

In his speedy return from a chipped fibula, Gawn had 12 contested possessions and kicked an important goal but was well held around the ground by in-form GWS ruckman Kieren Briggs in the Demons’ two-point loss on Saturday night.

The defeat meant Melbourne slipped a full game outside the top eight ahead of Friday night’s tough clash against the Bulldogs, but Goodwin said his side was ready to “ride the emotion” of a run of must-win games.

He said Gawn would be managed carefully during the six-day break but would improve each week he was back as the Demons’ finals chances hinge on stoppage domination.

A disappointed Melbourne captain Max Gawn leads the Demons off after their two-point loss to GWS on Saturday night. Picture: Morgan Hancock / Getty Images

“(Gawn) has pulled up well. He won’t do a lot this week, obviously it’s a short turnaround for us,” Goodwin said on Tuesday.

“He’s really about getting his body right … it was just great to have him back out there, he has a great presence for us and obviously gives us a good look at the ball.

“He’s just going to get better for us over the next few weeks.”

Goodwin said he himself felt “really healthy and fine” after he was discharged from hospital on Monday following a week-long battle with an infection that required IV treatment with antibiotics.

He was able to leave hospital briefly on Saturday night to coach the game, which he did entirely from the bench despite the temperature dropping as low as 5C during the game.

“When you think about having a week in hospital, people probably think the worst,” he said.

“Untreated can be quite dangerous, so I needed to just get it treated, and the hospital was fantastic in having me in there and also the ongoing treatment I’ll get.”

Melbourne wingman Lachie Hunter is in the frame to return from a string of calf injuries against his former Western Bulldogs on Friday night. Picture: Michael Willson / Getty Images

Goodwin said the Bulldogs were playing the best football he had seen from them in the last few years, and the Demons would pay extra attention to their “really high level” intercepting game behind the ball.

He said experienced wingman Lachie Hunter was no guarantee to return after making it through his VFL comeback from injury on managed minutes last weekend, but the left-footer would be “an important player in the next month for us”.

Goodwin said players and coaches accepted people would ride the “wins and losses” but the Demons couldn’t afford to “live in that space”.

“I think every game at this time of the year is heightened. Winning becomes accelerated, and obviously the thought of losing becomes a bit more dire, but that’s the reality we live in,” he said.

“It’s been an unbelievable season in that space, you just see so many teams fluctuate … you only need two or three wins in a row to be right up there in the competition; you only need two or three losses to be out of the eight and on the way down.

“I’m sure there’ll be another fluctuation in the season, another twist it will take, and I hope we’re a part of a positive twist.”