AFL restart: Demons ready to start new chapter against Carlton
Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin reckons his Demons are ready to turn the page on a difficult chapter.
Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin is confident the Demons are in a good position to put a bedevilled period, which traces back to their preliminary final thrashing in 2018, behind them.
A listless season-opening performance against West Coast, which followed on from a horror 2019, scarcely boosts confidence Melbourne can regain the form that earned them a fourth-place finish in 2018.
Melbourne were viewed as emerging contenders heading into last year but, after a troubled pre-season, managed just five wins and finished second last.
But Goodwin said the Demons have almost a full squad from which to choose heading into a Round 2 clash against Carlton at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.
“It is the best position we have been in for a long time as a footy club,” Goodwin said. “From our perspective, we want to look at what we can achieve. This year is going to be one of the hardest and most memorable seasons of all time and it will be a year everyone always remembers.
“We have prepared ourselves as best we can. We have had a bit of extra time to do that and now we want to put that into place and show everyone what we are capable of.
“We are really excited about what is possible and what we can do, not what we can’t do.”
The Demons coach, whose contract was extended to 2022 just before the start of last season, believes the additional time spent training prior to the season restart will benefit his team.
“We have done a massive amount of work through the summer to prepare for the season ahead and we didn’t want to waste that, so we kept our players training,” he said.
“We kept them at a really high training load, albeit in pairs away from the footy club, but we wanted to make sure we could maximise the work they had done through the summer.
“It is very unique that you get two pre-seasons, one slightly longer than the other, but we feel like we have improved in both of those.”
There is also significant optimism surrounding the fitness of former Suns and Fremantle talent Harley Bennell, who may make his Demons debut against Carlton.
A highly talented but injury-prone utility, Bennell managed only two matches in four years at the Dockers due to lingering calf complaints.
Listed in the pre-season draft as a speculative pick, the 27-year-old former No 2 draft pick played in an intra-club practice match on Saturday and recovered well.
• The AFL has cleared Jack Steven of any wrongdoing over the stabbing incident that led to the Geelong midfielder being hospitalised with a chest injury. The incident was investigated by police. However, details have not yet been made public.
The AFL released a statement declaring the matter closed.
Festival of Lies: Clubs ‘treating public for fools’ in trade spotlight
It’s the time of year for list managers and recruiters to shine, but the trade period has become a festival of lies. SCOTT GULLAN writes, the days of getting away with such gibberish are gone.
Revealed: Staggering asking price leaves Blue out in cold
The huge price Carlton forward Matt Owies has put on his head can be revealed as rival clubs baulk at his contract demands. Recap all the action from day 2 of the trade period here.