No one wants to see all-time Melbourne champion and ruck phenomenon Max Gawn hang up the boots, but the inclusion of Max Heath just might prolong the fateful day that dreaded time comes.
Gawn has largely lone-wolfed the ruck duties at the Demons, and given his tremendous standard, never really needed assistance.
But as the twilight of his career looms, support is what he needs, and on Sunday, Demons fans caught a glimpse of how that looks going forward.
Gawn recorded his fourth-lowest centre ball-up attendance return since 2021, according to WheeloRatings, taking part in 48 percent of umpire restarts. Heath took care of the rest, and despite coming up against Brodie Grundy, one of the leading ruckmen in the competition, he more than held his own.
The eight-time All-Australian was swung forward in a bid to fill the void left by the injured Brody Mihocek, but also tire Grundy.
Gawn finished the day with 18 possessions, seven clearances, 22 hitouts (nine to advantage), six marks and two goals. But his influence rose in the final term, with coach Steven King holding back his champion until the last 30 minutes of the contest before unleashing him as the No.1 ruck.
He recorded eight disposals, four clearances, three score involvements, two inside 50s, two marks and 158 metres gained.
The acquisition of Heath has meant that King and his coaching staff can start to implement a management strategy around Gawn this year, and going forward.
The former Saint was picked up for a packet of chips after struggling to cement himself in Ross Lyon's side. Melbourne handed over a 2027 fourth-round pick.
Heath has played the last three matches in the red and blue, and his past fortnight has exceeded expectations as what would be the foil to Gawn.
His emergence is exciting on two fronts, while his development will be pivotal to the 34-year-old's longevity.
By his own admission, Gawn never saw himself playing 100 games. Nor 200. And only weeks ago, he lifted the bat for his 250th. So is 300 out of the question?
"But as soon as I feel like I'm not performing … I don't have any want to be out here and struggling around the 'G and limping around the ground," he said in March ahead of his 250th game milestone.
"I'm really excited for what's next in my life and spending some more time with the family, travelling and whatnot, so I'm excited for that. But I'm also excited for the Stephen King era, you know, like, how could you not be? So I find the right balance if that's 300, I never thought I'd get 300. To be fair, I never thought I'd get 100. That's the case. But yeah, it's more of a day by day."
There's only two Demons to have achieved the feat - David Neitz (306) and Nathan Jones (302) - but with Heath's assistance, will Gawn be the third?
