Melbourne Demons mid-season report card revealed

Kysaiah Pickett has always been extremely talented, but he is growing into a very consistent player this season. The small forward is averaging 1.9 goals a game through nine matches, which is elite, but is also third in the team behind Oliver and Petracca for score involvements. While Melbourne tinkers with its tall forwards, having the likes of Pickett at their feet is so important.

Who needs to lift

Premiership defender Jake Lever has more to give. Averaging 4.5 spoils per game, rated average, and just 1.1 tackles per game, rated below average (after the first 11 rounds), his impact is well down on his better seasons. He’s still averaging three intercept marks per game, but Port Adelaide and Fremantle took that away from him and May by kicking to where they weren’t, and the better teams appear switched on to the fact they mustn’t give him easy chances to intercept.

Ed Langdon is also falling short of the high standards he’s set himself. Langdon was once considered among the best wingmen in the competition, and the drop-off has only been marginal, but in 2021 he averaged 5.4 marks per game. This season he was averaging just 3.7 after the first 11 rounds. He’s also kicked an inaccurate 2.8 this season. The two previous seasons he was good for at least a goal every two games.

Last season, Angus Brayshaw was playing to prove he warranted a new contract, Again, his drop-off is only marginal, but this season he was averaging 21.5 disposals per game from the first 11 rounds, down from 25.5, and his kicks have dropped from 16.7 to 11.6 kicks per game this season. Lachie Hunter’s arrival as another outside ball user has perhaps impacted both Brayshaw and Langdon’s output.

Coach’s box

Simon Goodwin appears determined to experiment to find out what Melbourne’s best 22 will look like by the end of the season, tinkering with his talls at either end of the ground.

Harrison Petty was a premiership defender, but Goodwin believes he can make the Demons better as a marking option up forward, alongside the impressive Jacob Van Rooyen. Petty has missed a few weeks with a foot injury, so Tom McDonald has come in, but Ben Brown remains on the outer. Ultimately though, it’s a new-look line-up, with Brodie Grundy working in tandem with Max Gawn.

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With a premiership under his belt as recently as two years ago, there’s no pressure on Goodwin’s job, but there is an expectation he keeps this side in the top four, fighting for another flag, given the talent at his disposal.

One other task for Goodwin is to figure out why the Demons are ranked near the bottom for points against from stoppages and for points against from defensive-50 stoppages.