Former AFL forward Daniel Menzel has the Demons returning back to the top of the ladder in 2023.
Melbourne famously fell away late in 2022 after a 10-0 start, departing finals in straight sets.
But Simon Goodwin’s team has added to their strengths over the off-season, recruiting Brodie Grundy to what is already a stacked on-ball unit.
Menzel, who played at both Geelong and Sydney, believes Grundy won’t just benefit the Demons, but force opposition teams into unfamiliar changes.
“To have Max Gawn in the ruck rotating with Brodie Grundy is incredible, it’s an embarrassment of riches,” he espoused on Sportsday SA.
“Throw in Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver, Jack Viney, Angus Brayshaw and Lachie Hunter when he goes in through there. Their midfield with this ruck combination can be the best midfield in the competition and can dominate teams, and they will dominate teams at times this year.
“If you’re an opposition ruckman playing on Gawn and he goes off and then Grundy comes in fresh, that’s going to be so hard to firstly negate, but secondly to mentally overcome that, it’s going to be a real challenge for opposition teams and they’re going to have to look at playing differently.
“If they are a standalone one-ruckman team, you’re probably going to have to play two rucks against Melbourne or concede you’re going to lose the hitouts massively.”
Grundy is a two-time All-Australian and dual best and fairest, giving the Demons an unrivalled edge in the ruck.
However, he’s also coming off an injury-interrupted season that saw Collingwood reportedly happy to persist with Darcy Cameron and Mason Cox instead of paying Grundy’s hefty salary.
With plenty to prove, Menzel named Grundy and new teammate Tom McDonald as the ones who need a big season for Melbourne.
McDonald too is coming off an injury-interrupted season that saw the Demons struggle for efficiency ahead of the football.
But after recovering from a foot injury for the 2023 season, Goodwin will hope McDonald has a big role to play.
“They lost their way last year after moving the ball so well in 2022. They lacked that genuine key forward with McDonald getting injured last year, so in large part with him back and either Gawn or Grundy down there they might have alleviated this tall marking key forward issue,” Menzel continued.
“(Luke) Jackson is still developing so he was okay last year, but they didn’t have the cohesion, they didn’t have the inside 50 efficiency and ball use that they did before.
“So if they can get that right… that’s what they will be focusing on in their pre-season because that let them down massively last year.
“They (McDonald and Grundy) have both got a point to prove and I think they’ve both got the greatest upside that can actually catapult the Demons back to the top of the ladder.
“Tom McDonald is almost the barometer of the team, when he’s up and running, covering the ground, what he adds to that team is massive.
“Brodie Grundy, he really needs to remind the competition and (he will) want to remind the competition just how good he is.”
Melbourne averaged the third most inside 50s of any team in 2022 but was beaten by five clubs in terms of points per game.
But with Menzel’s belief that the Demons will be able to correct that aspect of their game, he’s tipping Goodwin’s men for a third straight top-four finish.
“I have the Melbourne Football Club at the end of the regular season finishing on top of the ladder,” Menzel stated.
“They were 10-0 last season and on the way to back-to-back minor premierships, people forget about that because the issues crept in and they couldn’t fix them on the fly.
“Now that you’ve given them the off-season to review, the coaches to review… they’ve had a whole off-season to look at it, to sharpen up and I think this quality team will be back on top of the table at the end of the season.”
AFL analyst and regular track watcher David King recently gave added credibility to Menzel’s take, telling SEN that Melbourne had the best intensity at its pre-season training of all clubs.
Melbourne is slated for a match simulation game against St Kilda on February 24 before stepping out in an official practice match against Richmond on March 4.