KYSAIAH Pickett is set to re-join Melbourne's side to face Richmond in an ANZAC Day Eve clash on Wednesday night, coming off a one-match suspension, which left the team missing the high-energy forward during the Dees' last game against Brisbane.
Coach Simon Goodwin commended the players’ efforts over the past few weeks and showed his gratitude towards having time for the team to reset and get back to perfecting their game plan.
The Melbourne senior coach also discussed the privilege of playing ANZAC Day Eve, Clayton Oliver’s eagerness to play after returning from surgery, Lachie Hunter’s VFL return, and how they will be facing Richmond tomorrow night.
The Importance of ANZAC Day Eve
“It’s one on the fixture we all look forward to,” Goodwin said.
“The meaning of the ANZAC spirit, what it means to a lot of people, the awareness that it brings and the honour that we have and the privilege of playing in such a special game.”
Reflecting on Past Weeks
“As soon as we got back, we got into some really good training,” Goodwin said.
“The Brisbane game was a disappointing game… in terms of how we wanted to play, but we’ve been able to reset ourselves.
“Hopefully we come out tomorrow night and we’re the Melbourne evolved and the team that we want to be.
“When you play more Thursday night footy, there’s a consequence to that.
“I think every club just sits here and accepts it, prepares for it and does their best to prepare their players in the best way possible and perform to a really high level.”
Clayton’s Clearance
“He’s as eager as ever,” Goodwin said.
“Carrying that finger for three weeks with that weight of that in the last game was getting especially hard for him, so to get that fixed to get him healthy and to get him functioning really well is important.
“[The surgery] was always planned to be done obviously in that period… and Clayton was aware and embraced that that was the situation.
“You can see once again similar to the start of the season he’s got that smile on his face and got that eagerness, and that energy to come out and perform.
“The way he trained yesterday was unbelievable and we’re excited by that.”
Kozzy’s Return
“He’s pretty important, and it’s great to have him back. He’s an important player and we missed him against Brisbane,” Goodwin said.
“He brings an energy to our forward half, he hits the scoreboard, he brings a different dynamic to our midfield.”
Lachie’s back to VFL
“He’s coming into the selection conversation, since he played some really strong footy in his last game especially in the second half,” Goodwin said.
“We will make a decision later today [regarding selection] but he’s certainly someone that’s important to us.
“He’s an experienced player and can play multiple roles, so we’re keen to get him in at some stage soon.”
VFL Returns and Debuts
“We have a lot of guys starting to press claims, we’re getting healthier all the time,” Goodwin said.
“Shane McAdam’s playing his first game at Casey tomorrow, and obviously Lachie Hunter has come back in recent weeks.
“We’re starting to get some more people back available for selection to go along with some of the younger players that are performing well.”
Richmond’s Effort
“When you watch Richmond play, you know one thing that they’re going to bring effort, they’re going to bring intensity and they’re going to play the right way,” Goodwin said.
“You can see even in their losses so far, they’ve challenged a lot of teams and they’ve beaten some teams up the top of the ladder, so we’re going to have to be right in our game.”
