MELBOURNE is looking to bounce back to its winning ways this weekend as it faces off against the Sydney Swans on Sunday at the MCG.
Simon Goodwin fronted the media today in his weekly press conference to announce exciting debut news, ruckman responsibilities and a tough opponent in the Swans.
Jacob van Rooyen to Debut
“Well, this is probably the more exciting thing that Jacob van Rooyen will debut for us this week, he's worked incredibly hard at VFL level to develop his game over the last two years,” Goodwin said.
“He's got pretty good cohesion with this group already, one thing you can say from big Rooey is his ability to compete aerially, he goes at the ball hard, he creates a contest and his follow up at ground level is exceptional.
“So, he'll debut for us so that's exciting for us, it's exciting for our supporters, it's exciting for everyone in the game that a young power forward coming into the game.”
Grundy to step up
“Obviously, we didn't draft Brodie [Grundy] with playing as a solo ruckman in mind, but we also had that in the back of their mind that if we happened to lose a ruckman that we've still got a quality ruckman at our disposal.” Goodwin added.
“This isn’t abnormal for Brodie you know, he's played as a solo ruckman for a big part of his career, he's done it incredibly well so we're excited for Brodie have this opportunity.
“It’s certainly an opportunity that we think we can try and exploit how we get better, how we look as a team, how our system looks with Brodie and trail some things, so we're excited about what the opportunity presents for that.”
Form a unique bond with your favourite Melbourne Football Club player. Find out more about AFL Player Sponsorship today.
Facing a tough opponent in the Swans
“Yeah, I think we're getting a clearer and clearer picture about what we need to be good at against the Swans. We've played them a few times in recent years where they have had some success against us.” Added Goodwin.
“They're high quality and they're putting more and more talent through their midfield obviously with Gulden and Warner going through there, but they've also got the experienced heads of Heeney, Mills, Parker and Rowbottom. These are the guys that have been around a while now that are really hard to play against and we know what we're up against when we play Sydney.
“But they're a high-quality team for a reason and our backs will have to play to a to a really high level, so there’s a good duel down there between the two teams and we're excited by that prospect.”
Fans are encouraged to get down to Melbourne’s spiritual home of the MCG from 2pm, when gates open, before the first bounce at 3:20pm. Tickets to the game can be found here.
For those unable to attend, the game will be available to watch live via the Seven Network, Fox Footy and Kayo Sports. Dees supporters can currently access a Kayo x Melbourne membership deal here, with a 12-month subscription part of the package.
