Melbourne has been the surprise team of 2026, currently sitting in sixth with 11 wins, in a year where no one had them sniffing finals, and nine of those victories have come at the hallowed turf of the MCG.
The Demons were looking like they were in for a long rebuild after parting ways with premiership coach Simon Goodwin and trading away star midfielders Christian Petracca and Clayton Oliver.
First-year coach Steven King has flipped the script on expectation, completely changing the way the Demons play in 2026, transitioning from a contest and defence team to a fun and dangerous, free-flowing and open game plan.
Speaking on the Six Points AFL podcast, co-host Mark Stevens believes King has the coach of the year award locked up.
“Is he the coach of the year, Steven King then?”
“I think you can mount a case for King. I think it was set up for Longmuir this year, King's come in first year, had to totally reshape, rebrand the way that Melbourne plays.
"I've got King at number one. We would have had Melbourne probably vying for 12th to 10th, and now, as you said their vying for top four, I think he's coach of the year.
“Credit to Melbourne and Steven King and Melbourne. It's been an amazing effort.”
Six Points co-host Daniel Harford believes the Demons are a genuine premiership contender.
“The double Dees, they are flying, looking forward to a double chance, is what they are looking for. The double Dees, they are flying, another big win (on Sunday), now it was the Tigers, and we know they are not exactly premiership contenders at the moment," Harford said.
"But it's nine in a row at the MCG, and this is why I've rocketed them into the fourth seeding for the premiership.
"The MCG record is a factor, it's a significant factor, because obviously that Saturday in September is at the mighty coliseum, and if they get there, they would feel very confident that they can have a crack at anything.
"The way they're playing, there is this freedom that they're playing with, again, albeit it was Richmond, their freedom and transition from defence to attack is as good as any team in the comp.”
Stevens agrees that their MCG record could become a factor in finals.
"So nine and zip at the MCG, you're right, they've got to be a chance, and if they get in there, good luck beating them, you've got to go through the Dees.”
Melbourne plays three of their last six games at the MCG heading into finals, including the ladder leaders, Fremantle.
