Melbourne coach Mark Neeld admits he’s torn between sticking with senior players whose repeated skill errors leave him tense and frustrated and loading more youngsters into his inexperienced, uncompetitive AFL side.
Neeld, whose tenuous hold on his job weakened with Melbourne’s 17.20 (122) to 5.9 (39) thrashing from Collingwood at the MCG on Monday, has also acknowledged injured key forward Mitch Clark might not play again this season.
And he’s sidestepped a question on whether the Demons’ second half of the season will be any better than their first, which delivered one win and 10 losses, eight by 60 points or more.
Pre-game, Demons president Don McLardy – fighting his own battle with potential challenger Jeff Kennett – stated the annual Queen’s Birthday fixture was Melbourne’s most important game financially.
Injured co-captain Jack Grimes made a similar statement about its on-field importance, labelling it Melbourne’s grand final.
Predictably, the Demons didn’t deliver on either front.
The crowd of 50,835 was the lowest for the annual fixture since 2000.
On-field, Melbourne were competitive for a quarter, then kicked four goals to Collingwood’s 16.
Neeld blamed skill errors rather than a drop in effort, saying the frustration level “exploded” in his team because of constant turnovers.
He described himself as “frustrated and a bit tense” over what he said was a recurring theme.
Neeld said first-year players Dean Terlich, Matt Jones and Jimmy Toumpas used the ball better than more experienced teammates, which while giving hope long-term left a short-term problem.
“If you’re going to continue to kick the ball back, we’ve got a couple of other boys in the VFL that probably could play,” Neeld said.
“But then we have to say if we’re playing with 13 guys under 50 (games) do we play with 17 guys under 50 and how does that look?
“They’ll be the discussions.”
Key forward Chris Dawes sprained an ankle and will have scans on Tuesday to determine for how long he’ll join fellow marking target Mitch Clark, key defender James Frawley and Grimes on the sidelines.
Neeld was pessimistic about Clark’s prospects.
“If Mitch plays another game for the rest of the year I’ll be really pleased,” he said.
The second-year coach was similarly downbeat and non-committal when asked if Melbourne’s second half of the season would be any better than their first.
“Let’s keep pushing forward, see who’s up for it,” he said.
“Do we bring in another few kids from (VFL affiliate) Casey and give them some games in the second half of the year if they’re earning it and what do we do with the older guys that keep turning the ball over?”
Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley admitted playing the Demons didn’t help him gauge his own side.
“It’s very difficult to measure our performance against that. What’s acceptable? 60 points, 75 points, 100 points, 150?” Buckley said.
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A touching moment for the Demons star with Jacob Hopper.
There's an old saying that you should never argue with an idiot, because they'll drag you down to their level and then beat you…
The ball hit the boundary umpire's leg and rebounded back into play, leading to debate over whether a throw-in should have been called for.
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The Dees will be hoping it doesn't prove costly!
