Gary Buckenara looks at where Melbourne’s list is at, a year after winning the 2021 premiership
Melbourne was one of the busiest clubs in the trade period — but if list guru Gary Buckenara had his way, it would have been even more active. See the stars Bucky thinks were expendable.
Melbourne fell in a hole at the business end of the season after starting the year very well.
Winning a flag can often see a bit of self-satisfaction creep in and standards slightly drop.
Credit to the Demons, they started the season unbelievably and it looked like they were almost unbeatable.
But winning back-to-back flags requires a big focus and commitment for every match, which seemed to take a toll on the group.
Every team comes hard at the reigning premiers and there are no easy games for them.
Then they ran out of oomph.
Their performances lacked energy from mid-season and they were really disappointing against the Lions to bow out.
Regardless, Melbourne has enough top-end talent and quality young players on their list to challenge for another flag or two over the next three years or more.
With 26 A, B or rising star players, they should definitely be a contender again in 2023.
Melbourne is in a window that it needs to capitalise on, given how much talent is on its list right now.
The squad is still good enough to win a premiership.
I think they should be able to rebound and will be disappointed if they do not go on with it and make a serious challenge.
Luke Jackson is a loss because he is a very talented young player but Brodie Grundy will be a great back-up to Max Gawn.
In fact, the former Collingwood big man is almost the ideal player they need to provide support.
They are different types of players and Melbourne will have to start to manage Gawn a bit more because he has carried the load.
Grundy can play forward because he is a really good mark and can be dangerous.
Gawn is a bit more awkward but he has a presence.
I think they can be quite a combination and as for the fit as a duo, they should be able to work that out.
There are a couple of things worth noting with my list ratings.
I have named Kysaiah Pickett as a B-grader because I want to see him do the same again next season.
If he does, then he will become an A-grader.
Similarly, Bailey Fritsch is someone I have not rated as an A-grader because he dashes in and out of games.
He had a great year in 2021 but I thought this season he was a bit up and down, even though he was in the All-Australian squad of 44.
As good as I think Grundy is as a recruit, he has gone backwards since signing that big contract so I have rated him as a B-grader.
LIST NEEDS
Melbourne’s squad is very well balanced.
Not only does it have 26 A, B or rising star players remaining from last season, but it also boasts some very good C-graders and future potential A or B-graders.
It is a credit to the Demons’ list management and recruiting team.
I have been critical of them in the past because they did not seem to have enough players with competitiveness about them.
Clearly, the group dispelled that theory in 2021 and for a lot of 2022.
Finding a ruckman to replace Jackson was the club’s biggest need entering the trade period.
Grundy is an ideal player to give Gawn support and he strengthens the Demons’ ruck stocks.
It would have been a worry if they did not adequately replace Jackson and Gawn went down with injury.
Their back six is really good, their midfield is OK with a lot of great runners, but the area they have struggled with a little bit is up forward.
HOW THE LIST RATINGS WORK
At a club level, player ranking is generally based on gradings of A+, A, B+, B, C+, C and the developing players.
My rankings will focus on A, B, C and for the developing 20-year-old and under players will be rated as rising stars and those that need more time.
With the younger players, it is important to consider who is coming through and those who need longer to develop.
The most important areas for clubs to look at is how many A and B ranked players they have as well as the rising stars, who I believe should be A and B-grade players in the future.
A
Angus Brayshaw, 26
Max Gawn, 30
Jake Lever, 26
Steven May, 30
Clayton Oliver, 25
Christian Petracca, 26
Christian Salem, 27
Jack Viney, 28
B
Ben Brown, 29
Bailey Fritsch, 25
Brodie Grundy, 28
James Harmes, 27
Michael Hibberd, 32
Lachie Hunter, 27
James Jordon, 21
Ed Langdon, 26
Jake Melksham, 31
Alex Neal-Bullen, 26
Tom McDonald, 30
Harrison Petty, 22
Kysaiah Pickett, 21
Charlie Spargo, 22
Tom Sparrow, 22
Adam Tomlinson, 29
C
Kade Chandler, 22
Luke Dunstan, 27
Josh Schache, 24
Joel Smith, 26
RISING STARS
Jake Bowey, 20
Trent Rivers, 21
NEEDS MORE TIME
Blake Howes, 19
Bailey Laurie, 20
Judd McVee, 19
Andy Moniz-Wakefield, 18
Deakyn Smith, 20
Daniel Turner, 20
Jacob Van Rooyen, 19
Taj Woewodin, 19
LIST BREAKDOWN
A grade = 8
B grade = 16
C grade = 4
RS grade = 2
NMT grade = 8
TRADE TARGETS
I thought they needed another key forward coming through, particularly with Weideman going, so it made sense why they targeted Josh Schache.
Hawthorn veteran Jack Gunston would have been a great pick-up.
He is experienced, consistent and kicks goals in big games.
Gunston is instead off to Brisbane and he will be a good player for the Lions.
If the Demons had not signed Grundy, then a mobile ruck/forward like Rory Lobb would also have been a player they could have targeted.
But Lobb nominated the Bulldogs as his preferred club.
Oskar Baker and Fraser Rosman are the only confirmed delistings.
TRADE BAIT
Melbourne has lost Jackson, who is going to be an A-grade player, given how athletic he is and the fact he has played well in a premiership.
I thought if they needed to get salary cap relief to bring Grundy in, they could have given up a James Harmes, Ed Langdon, Jayden Hunt or Charlie Spargo type.
Maybe even an Alex Neal-Bullen.
Langdon is coming off a very good year, but they are the sort of players Melbourne can cover because they have a lot of them on their list.
Key-position players and ruckmen like Grundy are harder to find.
In the end, only Hunt was traded from that group.
Small forward Toby Bedford also went to GWS for more opportunities.
Weideman is a very talented player but when he has come into Melbourne’s side, it is like he has felt under so much pressure that he has had to chase the footy.
He just needs continuity of playing.
It is good that Weideman will get another chance at Essendon.
I have rated Lachie Hunter as a B-grader and he adds depth to an already deep midfield.
CRYSTAL BALL
Melbourne should be one of the teams to beat for a few years yet given the quality of their best players and what they have coming through.
The experience the youngsters will have got from the 2021 flag success and even this past season is surely going to drive a great culture for a while.
It gets tough being the hunted every week and in 2022 they handled it quite well, but had some inconsistent performances from time to time.
Not being the reigning premier next season should ease a bit of pressure.
With the list in such good shape, there is opportunity for more success around the corner.
I reckon their flag window is probably open for the next three years.
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