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The Melbourne Demons have been nothing short of a disaster club for the AFL for the better part of the last decade, a reality the current playing group, led by new coach Paul Roos, will be looking to turn around when the season commences in March.
The last finals appearance by the club was in 2006. Since 2007 they have finished no higher than 12th, while also claiming the wooden spoon in consecutive years during 2008-2009. They last won the Premiership in 1964.
While a finals appearance is beyond them in 2014, the rebuilding of the club for the future begins this season.
When looking at the squad there are some quality experienced players with some extremely exciting up-and-coming youngsters, which provides Melbourne with great optimism moving forward.
The forwards
What would the Demons give to see Mitch Clark play a 22 game season? Unfortunately for Clark seasons 2012 and 2013 were about as bad as it could get.
What Clark has shown for Melbourne when fit and firing is the ability to take a big mark and then convert on the scoreboard.
His fitness is vital for Melbourne to be competitive this year, as it will ensure he takes the best defender each week, which will be very helpful for one the club’s brightest young stars, Jesse Hogan.
Hogan comes with huge wraps after a stand out season in the VFL in 2013. The Demons will play him pretty much all season, fitness permitting.
He kicked 39 goals and won Casey’s Best and Fairest in 2013 and the Demon faithful cannot wait to see him strut his stuff on the MCG every other week.
The players to complement Clark and Hogan are Chris Dawes and Jeremy Howe.
Dawes had an injury riddled 2013 and needs to get himself fit to play as the third tall down forward.
The benefit he will have is that the two best defenders will take Clark and Hogan, thereby giving him the third option and the opportunity to exert some influence in the forward line.
Howe brings the entertainment factor, regularly making the highlight reel for his spectacular marking ability.
He needs to spend as much time forward as possible, probably running off the half forward line and use his leap to the advantage of the Demons to apply scoreboard pressure.
There is no defender that can reach him for height, when given a run at the ball.
Where the Demons are lacking up forward is a decent set of crumbing small forwards. Other teams in the league use these type of players to great effect and the Demons are really far behind at this stage.
Roos will need to identify two or three players to play at the feet of the Clark, Hogan, Dawes and Howe to lock the ball into the forward 50 and apply as much scoreboard pressure as possible.
Maybe Roos will run a combination of Rohan Bail, Jordi McKenzie, Sam Blease or possibly new recruit Jay Kennedy-Harris in and around the forwards to provide the pressure that the top teams are capable of applying.
The midfield
The midfield is where it all starts and an area of the ground Melbourne was smashed in last year.
The Demons were ranked 18th for kicks, 17th for handballs and 18th for points scored per game, so it is little wonder they finished so lowly last year and were the only team to lose to Greater Western Sydney in 2013.
The Demons brought in Bernie Vince from Adelaide, Daniel Cross from the Bulldogs, Viv Michie from Fremantle and Dom Tyson from GWS. They used their first pick (nine) in the draft to bring in the highly rated Christian Salem.
Cross is an astute pick up and will lead the Demons where everything begins – the training track.
Coming from a club that enjoyed good success with a super talented midfield at the Western Bulldogs, Cross will hopefully show the Demons midfielders what is required to play at the highest level, consistently on a weekly basis over the long term.
Vince is a former best and fairest winner at the Crows and he may have a point to prove to his former employers (specifically Brenton Sanderson) as the word out of Adelaide was he did not want to leave the club.
According to the reports, Sanderson had not actually told Vince he was potential trade bait last year.
Michie comes off a 2013 where he won the Peel Thunder best and fairest in the WAFL after an injury plagued time at Fremantle. Fitness permitting he should resurrect his AFL career in Melbourne.
Tyson and Salem are young with plenty of footy ahead of them. The development of young players is something that will hopefully be completely overhauled by Roos and the new coaching staff as the Demons have been diabolical in recent times at this area of their administration.
They will be led in the centre by two-time best and fairest winner Nathan Jones. Probably the stand out player during the club’s darkest days, he should be made captain as reward for effort and his relentless running and attack on the ball.
The most exciting player in the Demons midfield is Jack Viney. A young player with no fear playing his heart out for the club he has supported his whole life is just brilliant to watch.
It will be great to watch his development over the next decade as he improves all areas of his game as the Demons rise.
Two much maligned players in Jack Trengove and Jack Watts will be hoping that 2014 is the year they can really launch their careers under the guidance of Roos. Both highly rated juniors came into a poor club environment and subsequently their careers have yet to take off.
Watts in particular has copped plenty of criticism by being a number one pick in the draft, while Trengove a former number two pick did not handle the responsibility of being a co-captain very well.
Here is hoping for a better 2014 for both.
Jimmy Toumpas played some very good footy at times last year and looks set for a bright future in among the young midfield players. His outside work and delivery of the footy into the forward line should be a great complement to the inside tough work of Viney in years to come.
The ruck department is the weak link for me. Mark Jamar, Jake Spencer and Max Gawn will not worry many (if any opposition) coaches this year. The best result is to break even as much as possible and give the men at their feet the opportunity to win the footy. Of the three Jamar in particular will look to bounce back to the form of 2010 when he made the All Australian team as the second ruckman.
The defence
The backline will once again be led by James Frawley, Colin Garland and Jack Grimes. They will be hoping that an improved and bulked up midfield will mean the ball does not make as many entries as they have become accustomed to in recent seasons.
Jack Grimes will be hoping for a change of luck on the injury front and the opportunity to play the full 22 games this year.
I do not think he will stay on as captain, but may very well assume the role in the future once he is further matured and had significant game time under his belt.
I suspect Jack Watts will run off the half-back line (and probably off the wing) and will be used as the link between the back and forward lines as he does possess pretty clean disposal and a good height advantage on most half forwards.
James Strauss, Daniel Nicholson, Dean Terlich and Mitch Clisby will provide the support and their ability to form a tight, cohesive defensive unit will be vital to the success of the Demons in years coming.
Summary
The biggest wish the Demons have for 2014 is a relatively injury-free year, compared with the high injury toll of 2012-2013.
Paul Roos has taken on the poisoned chalice as coach of the Melbourne Demons. His experience and will to win should do wonders for the players who have been playing for a club severely lacking on both those fronts.
A staple of the Roos-led Sydney Swans was the ability to continually produce and trade for players that bought into the culture of the club.
Everything is done to win the ball and support your teammates with hard contested footy the order of the day coupled with gut-busting running from everyone on the ground.
If Roos can implement this mindset during his three years in charge of Melbourne, the next coach is going to enjoy his tenure with a battle-hardened squad with an insatiable appetite for the contest and – most importantly – the will to win.
Call me an optimist but I think better days for the Demons are just a few short years away.
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