The early going of season 2022 was looking to be a Melbourne cakewalk. Having won their opening 10 games, the talk was when they would lose a game.
By the end of the home and away season, Melbourne hit a wall losing six of its last ten to finish second on the ladder. Although battling through an inconsistent patch, expectations were that this talented group would be there on the last Saturday of September. This would be diminished within the space of two weeks, losing Sydney and Brisbane leaving a sour taste in their mouths.
Despite not fulfilling the ultimate goal, Melbourne is going to be right into the premiership conversation yet again. Adding former Collingwood ruckman Brodie Grundy and Western Bulldogs midfielder Lachie Hunter only strengthens an already imposing depth in its playing list.
Here we will go through the five burning questions surrounding how Melbourne will fare in 2023.
1. Can the Gawn-Grundy combination mesh together?
With Luke Jackson returning home to Western Australia to play for Fremantle, Melbourne had to fill the ruck void. And they did by acquiring Collingwood ruckman Brodie Grundy. The 28-year-old's prized addition makes for a potent ruck combination alongside six-time All-Australian Max Gawn. Grundy is coming off a 2022 campaign that was curtailed after hurting his knee in the ANZAC Day clash against Essendon. Having made a full recovery, the two-time All-Australian is ready to produce for his new club.
Melbourne's convincing practice win over Richmond last Saturday showed how destructive the ruck pairing can be, combining for six majors and 11 marks. Throughout his career, Gawn has proven to be a goalscoring threat, most notably in his five-goal haul in the 2021 preliminary final against Geelong. Although never been a posing threat up forward, Grundy can chip in despite never kicking more than two goals in a match.
Already holding the mantle of the league's best midfield with Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver and Jack Viney, the Gawn-Grundy pairing arguably puts them at the top. During the practice match against Richmond, the ruck duo's flexibility would be on display with Gawn occasionally playing down back with Grundy contesting in the ruck. And when Grundy went forward, Gawn was handling the ruck duties. What a luxury to have for coach Simon Goodwin. Although the sample size is only a minuscule one game, this is only the beginning of how damaging this pairing will be.
