MELBOURNE has fallen to a 58-point loss in a dominant Gold Coast display at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.
Despite showing patches of fight, Melbourne couldn't recover from a slow start, eventually going down 8.14 (62) to 18.12 (120) in front of 24,506 fans.
An early knee injury to first-round draft pick Xavier Lindsay disrupted the Demons’ momentum. Melbourne rallied in the second term, creating opportunities through Bayley Fritsch and Harry Sharp, but were unable to capitalise on the scoreboard.
After half-time, the contest tightened briefly, with Sharp kicking his second goal, but Gold Coast found answers through Touk Miller and Ben King to extend the margin.
While Melbourne worked hard late, the Suns proved too strong, finishing with a dominant final term.
A positive for the Demons was the performance of young gun Harvey Langford who, after being recalled to the side, found 26 disposals and kicked his first goal at AFL level.
The Demons will look to respond next week against Geelong at GMHBA Stadium.
MELBOURNE 1.4 2.9 6.12 8.14 (62)
GOLD COAST 4.5 5.8 12.10 18.12 (120)
GOALS
Melbourne: Sharp 2, van Rooyen, Petracca, Melksham, Langford, Chandler, Bowey
Gold Coast: King 4, Miller 3, Graham 2, Witts, Weller, Walter, Read, Noble, Long, Humphrey, Flanders, Anderson
INJURIES
Melbourne: Lindsay (knee)
Gold Coast: Nil
SUBSTITUTES
Melbourne: Jake Melksham (replaced Xavier Lindsay in the first quarter)
Gold Coast: Jake Rogers (replaced Nick Holman at three-quarter time)
Crowd: 24,506 at the MCG
