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.
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.
During their 2021 premiership run, Melbourne's game plan of fast ball movement would be prevalent in carving opposition teams into ribbons. The preliminary final shellacking of Geelong and the third quarter grand final avalanche against the Western Bulldogs embodied Melbourne's ruthless style.
At times in 2022, Melbourne played at breakneck speed and other times at a conservative tempo, using a kick-mark game to open up the opposition. Since joining the club as an assistant coach, Mark Williams has had the most significant input in propelling an average kicking side into an elite disposal side by foot.
With exceptional ball users in Petracca, Oliver, Viney, Angus Brayshaw, Steven May, Christian Salem, and new Demon Lachie Hunter, Melbourne has the players to be adventurous and creative with their kicking. Its hitout against Richmond showed why the Demons are a seriously damaging outfit when they attack at a constant speed.
On almost every occasion, a Melbourne player would look to attack the corridor, opening up multiple options for its forwards to lead into. In the post-match presser, assistant Coach Adem Yze said the emphasis of ball movement was to readjust areas where the team broke down last season.
“Not corridor as such. Every team is going to try to play a little quicker. We like the way we play and the way we move the ball for the last couple of years, but there were some issues in our game that we wanted to straighten up," he said.
"Our forward line is going to help with that, but we've changed a little bit on some of our entries and we'll look to attack the goals a bit more. It was nice to hit the scoreboard and look potent on offence."
Ten rounds into 2022, the Melbourne train was unstoppable. Then it slowly started dwindling, eventually exiting the finals in straight sets. Richmond had a similar fate. Winning the 2017 premiership only to exit a season later in the preliminary final, before winning the flag in 2019. There is an anticipatory feel Melbourne may reclaim the premiership cup in 2023.
The pillars across the board are sound as ever. Possessing arguably the best backline with Steven May, Jake Lever, Harrison Petty, Christian Salem, Michael Hibberd and Angus Brayshaw, the Demons' back six is incredibly hard to expose.
A midfield that oozes class and grunt behind superstars Petracca and Oliver, hard nuts in Viney and James Harmes, and the tireless outside run of Ed Langdon are the most damaging of all 18 sides for a reason.
Up forward, Melbourne has a vast variety of imposing tall timber, hybrid forwards, and terror-hungry smalls which make defending them a nightmare. From Ben Brown, Tom McDonald, Bayley Fritsch, Charlie Spargo, and Kysaiah Pickett, all on any given day can shred opposing defences into smithereens.
The premiership race has never been more wide open than ever before, and Melbourne is one of those hungry teams on the quest to reclaim the premiership.
After a difficult 2022 for Lachie Hunter, which saw him play only 10 games due to personal issues, it is a fresh beginning for the 28-year-old.
The Western Bulldogs' 2016 premiership player will provide plenty of experience, having played 173 games. By landing the classy runner, Melbourne fills its other wing position to pair alongside Ed Langdon, giving the Demons one of the most dangerous wing pairings in the competition.
Hunter fits the side's mould with his ability to cover plenty of meterage, his precise left-foot and ball-winning abilities fitting into Coach Simon Goodwin's plans. Despite last season being a subpar campaign, a change of scenery will see the hard-running wingman thrive.
Last Saturday's practice encounter against Richmond showed exactly why Hunter is such a damaging player when given time and space.
He finished with 26 disposals, including 20 uncontested, 6 marks, and 4 score involvements. Speaking postgame to the club's website, Hunter said developing synergy with his new wing pairing alongside Langdon felt good.
“Hopefully we give the team some balance. I mean he kind of owns that right side and hopefully, I can do the same on the left side. He's an experienced player who's been here for a while and knows how it works," he said.
A firing Hunter only makes this Melbourne brigade more potent than ever before.
Melbourne faces a tough decision on Kysaiah Pickett as to how long they can sign him for. Currently one of the game's most electrifying small forwards, the former first-round pick is due to come out of contract at the end of this season.
With this, suitors are lining up for his services, most notably Port Adelaide because of his connection with 2004 premiership player and his uncle, Byron.
Pickett has had an outstanding two seasons in the red and blue, booting 40 and 41 goals respectively, with his ferocious tackling pressure and uncanny goal sense making him one of the best smalls in the league.
Speaking to The Age last month, Melbourne's Head of Football Alan Richardson remained confident the 21-year-old will stay as talks with the club and Pickett's manager Peter Rohde continue to progress.
Attention will turn to the livewire putting together another consistent campaign. He has been spending more time in the middle, giving Melbourne a different dimension to its already deep rich-layered midfield.
Having already inked away Petracca, Oliver, Salem, Gawn, and Brayshaw to long-term deals, the question will be whether Pickett inks a new deal or if he decides to return to South Australia at season's end.
Melbourne would love to keep him considering the club hasn't had this type of calibre small forward since Jeff Farmer.
