MELBOURNE stars Max Gawn and Christian Petracca are both tracking well after spending time on modified training schedules.

Gawn (larynx) and Petracca (rib) have been on non-contact programs following their respective injuries, with the club’s GM of AFL Football Performance Alan Richardson joining RSN to provide an update on the duo.

“It’s really close in terms of contact, [Max] hasn’t missed a beat really in terms of getting in loads, he's been able to run, he's been able to do a lot of his footy stuff but avoid contact, not unlike Trac,” Richardson said.

“That’s a really significant component for this time of year, to make sure that they're getting all the miles in their legs.

“We don't mind that those boys are missing a bit of the contact, given they're so good at it. So, it’s really close for the both of them.”

While Gawn and Petracca are ticking their recovery boxes, it’s the young Demons that will soon be the talking point among the fanbase.

Round 1 is now just 54 days away and discussions surrounding team selection will begin ramping up, with young draftees Harvey Langford and Xavier Lindsay no doubt among the talks.

“They are really talented players,” Richardson said.

“For different reasons, because they're different players, they'll both be in the mix when it comes time to play our first trial games against the Kangaroos and the Dockers.  

“Lindsay, as you’d expect, has terrific composure, he was a little bit late into the program, because he came in off a knee injury, but he’s done everything asked of him from our fitness crew.

“He's back out on the track now and doing everything, so that's really exciting.

“Big Harvey is going to be a quite a special player with his size and he's running capacity, his ability to play forward and through the midfield gives him and us some real flexibility.”

Langford and Lindsay are just two of a particular cohort of Demons that are pushing the boundaries on what is often expected of young players. 

Richardson praised this group and their overall influence on the list. 

“McVee, Turner, van Rooyen, Rivers - there's a good group underneath that are pushing through and have already been having a pretty significant impact on performance," Richardson said. 

“We’re really confident about the next group coming from this year's draft, they're terrifically talented players that we think are going to help the team going forward."

A particular area of focus from Melbourne’s season last year was its forward-half efficiency, footy fans putting it as a key critic from 2024. 

With both the addition of new players and the mix up of experienced talent, Richardson solidified his faith in the make-up of the team’s forward line heading into 2025.

“We’ve been relatively young [up forward]…from our perspective, we think [van Rooyen] will have a bigger influence, a bigger impact on the footy now because he's played a bit more and has a greater connection with the kickers,” Richardson said.

“We really like the way Daniel Turner's progressing as a forward, he's a terrific anaerobic beast, he’s got some real power launching at the ball.

“Aidan Johnson's new, he's a player that we picked up in this year's draft, a mature age player from Werribee.

“He's had a really impressive start on the track, and it would not surprise me at all if he's in the mix early. He could play a bit of second ruck depending on what we want to do there from a selection point of view, so that's quite exciting.

“And Harrison Petty is probably going to do a little bit of both for us, we think that his versatility can be a real weapon for us.

“We know that he can play terrific footy down back, but he can also be a real threat up front.

“We’ve certainly got some options with Bayley Fritsch, Kozzy [Pickett], [Kade] Chandler and [Jake Melksham], these sort of blokes, and perhaps even a midfielder, we know what Christian can do in front of the ball as a forward as well, it’s exciting.”