MELBOURNE has made two changes for Saturday afternoon’s clash against North Melbourne at the MCG.
The Demons have included defender Sam Frost and small forward Dean Kent for their first match of the season.
Versatile tall Cam Pedersen and speedster Jayden Hunt have been omitted, after they played in the opening two rounds. It is the first time Hunt has been left out of the side since he made his AFL debut in round four, 2016, ending a 43-game streak.
Mitch Hannan, Corey Maynard, Pedersen and Hunt have been named emergencies. Hannan and Maynard have made one appearance each this year, in the opening round of the season against Geelong at the MCG.
Coach Simon Goodwin said Frost and Kent’s recent efforts for Casey couldn’t be ignored.
“They’ve been in unbelievable form at VFL level and they’ve been knocking down the door for a few weeks now,” he told Melbourne Media.
“The two unlucky guys to miss out are Cam Pedersen and Jayden Hunt, so they’re the two changes for this week, but we’re really looking forward to this week’s game.”
Frost has not played since round 20 last season, when Melbourne went down to GWS Giants in Canberra. He played 16 matches in 2017 for a total of 56 AFL games.
It will be Kent’s first match since round 17 last year, when he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury against the Adelaide Crows in Darwin. He made six appearances last year and will be lining up for his 59th AFL game.
Reflecting on his side’s opening win of the season, against the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba last Saturday night, Goodwin said it was a character-building display.
“It was a terrific win. It was really tough conditions. It was humid up there and off a short six-day break, it was terrific that the boys played an outstanding first half,” he said.
“Clearly, we let the Lions back into the game, after they really ramped up their pressure.
“To really pull through in the end – I thought the will to win and the desire from our team late in the game was sensational. We’ve come away with a really good win.”
Looking ahead to this weekend, Goodwin said his team was eager to finally end a 17-match losing streak against the Roos.
“It’s a big clash at the MCG, in front of our own supporters,” he said.
“We haven’t beaten the Kangaroos for a long, long time, so we’re looking forward to the game.
“I’m looking forward to us putting our best foot forward and really putting a performance on for our supporters that they can be proud of.”
Melbourne will be aiming to win its first game against North Melbourne since round 20, 2006.
Only two players from that game remain in the AFL today: co-captain Nathan Jones, who was playing just his fourth game, and former Roo and now Magpie, Daniel Wells, who was making his 82nd appearance.
Jones will be lining up for his 242nd AFL match, while Wells has notched up 253 AFL games (243 with the Roos and 10 with Collingwood).
Round three
Saturday, April 7
Melbourne v North Melbourne, MCG
Home, 2:10pm (AEST)
Melbourne
B: Jake Lever, Oscar McDonald, Josh Wagner
HB: Bernie Vince, Michael Hibberd, Neville Jetta
C: Jordan Lewis, Nathan Jones, Christian Salem
HF: Jake Melksham, Sam Frost, Alex Neal-Bullen
F: Christian Petracca, Jesse Hogan, Jeff Garlett
Foll: Max Gawn, Clayton Oliver, Dom Tyson
I/C: James Harmes, Dean Kent, Bayley Fritsch, Tom Bugg
Emg: Mitch Hannan, Corey Maynard, Cam Pedersen, Jayden Hunt
In: Kent, Frost
Out: Pedersen, Hunt
North Melbourne
B: Marley Williams, Scott Thompson, Ryan Clarke
HB: Jamie Macmillan, Robbie Tarrant, Ed Vickers-Willis
C: Ben Jacobs, Jy Simpkin, Billy Hartung
HF: Shaun Atley, Jarrad Waite, Kayne Turner
F: Jack Ziebell, Ben Brown, Luke McDonald,
Foll: Todd Goldstein, Shaun Higgins, Ben Cunnington
I/C: Jed Anderson, Trent Dumont, Nathan Hrovat, Luke Davies-Uniacke
Emg: Majak Daw, Mitchell Hibberd, Mason Wood, Cameron Zurhaar
In: –
Out: –
