Mighty Max Leads Dees In Dogfight
Round 17 – Western Bulldogs Vs Melbourne – Mighty Max Leads Dees In Dogfight
Liam Chambers – our correspondent in Coffs Harbour
Another win and the second against the Doggies. We waited tentatively on Saturday evening to see which Bulldogs side would turn up and for the first half it seemed like the giant killers from Round 15 were back and that we might suffer the same fate as Geelong. A brilliant third quarter settled the Demon’s nerves and it was a comfortable win in the end.
Max Gawn just keeps getting better and his hitouts were just poetry in motion. Watching the highlights was to see a smorgasbord of deliveries to the waiting Demon players. He even seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, flicking a back hander to Angus Brayshaw as if it was as natural as breathing. Angus Brayshaw put in another sterling performance, running, tackling, disposing and generally frustrating the opposition.
Clayton Oliver is a genius with magic hands; he even found time to slot home a goal. There is talk either himself or Maxy taking the Brownlow Medal this year and if they put in many more displays like the one at the MCG then don’t bet against either one. The two Christians (Petracca & Salem) again showed what top notch players they are capable of being. Once they can maintain the consistency of quality football they display on occasion, then they will help make Melbourne a truly great side.
Speaking of consistency, Jesse Hogan is finding the space between the uprights more regularly again. His four goals were vital in keeping the Demons second in terms of percentages. It great to see Jeff Garlett back in the side again and he looked determined to fight for his place, kicking two goals against the Bulldogs. Tom McDonald is looking fit again after the brutal game against Port Adelaide last month. Jake Melksham is going from strength to strength and his solitary goal on Saturday doesn’t do justice to the way he played.
Melbourne have many pluses but some of the negatives need to be ironed out in order to beat the more fancied sides that we’ll be playing before finals. We make some great runs of play that often end in a behind or have us slipping up at a vital moment. Our defending has improved which is good as the defence will need to be at it’s best against the Cats at their home ground. We displayed some dominating football in the last five minutes of the Bulldog’s game which looks very promising. The ability to be able to pick up the pace late in the game will be vital against the tougher teams. Some commentators still doubt that the Dees can play finals footy but I really believe that we will step up to the challenge over the last six rounds and will surprise a few critics into the bargain.
Finally, the brilliantly consistent Neville Jetta has signed a three year extension with the Demons and that’s got to be a boost for Dee’s fans everywhere.
MELBOURNE 3.4 6.9 14.9 18.11 (119)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 4.1 6.6 9.9 10.9 (69)
GOALS
Melbourne: Hogan 4, McDonald 3, Garlett 2, Neal-Bullen 2, Spargo 2, Petracca, Melksham, Oliver, Hannan, Lewis
Western Bulldogs: Wallis 3, Schache 2, Johannisen 2, Hunter, Lipinski, McLean
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