Sellar opens up for Dawes
The term last minute change was aptly applied to key forward Chris Dawes against the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium, when he literally pulled out minutes before the match. Dawes was warming up with the team, when he hurt his calf and was forced from the field. Enter James Sellar, who gained a last minute call-up.         

Coach Neil Craig revealed Dawes had “slight calf soreness” in the lead up to the match, but it was his other calf which went on game day. 

“In preparation, he had slight calf soreness, but by Saturday he was pain free and he was feeling really confident with it. I was keen for Chris to play, if possible, without being stupid about it.

“You won't believe this, but he did his good calf in the warm up. So it has been a tough season for Chris, but he will be fantastic for the footy club. He brings great maturity to the club in his thinking.

“When he has played for us, I can see some situations where he will be a very good player for the Melbourne Football Club, particularly if you get Mitch Clark up there with Jesse Hogan, then put a [Colin] Sylvia, [Jeremy] Howe and [Jack] Watts up there.

"It is a pretty impressive forward line on paper. you have got to get them all on the park, he brings strong leadership to that group as well and we were disappointed he could not play."

Howe flies more often than Birdman
Neil Craig was posed the notion post-match: had he seen any fly like Jeremy Howe during his time in the game?

This came after Howe took a brilliant hanger over teammate Tom McDonald and Bulldog opponent Tom Campbell. He also took an even better mark later on – had it not gone over the boundary line. 

Craig had seen former Adelaide star and now Brisbane Lions physical preparation manager Brett ‘Birdman’ Burton as Howe’s equal, but not as consistently. 

“Yeah, I have, a guy called Brett Burton. I saw him take an unbelievable mark out against Carlton [at Etihad Stadium],” he said.

“In terms of consistency, no I haven’t, it's unbelievable isn't it? It is a great part of his game, and I just hope whoever is coaching Jeremy just continues to encourage him to go [for his marks] because it gets people out of their seat and gets me out of my seat.

“Jeremy has to add some other things to his game of course, but I hope he never loses that. It's a great part of the game.”

Vice captain Nathan Jones said Howe was simply a “freak in the air”

“He does it all the time. He’s got a lot of talent,” he told melbournefc.com.au.

“He’s a human highlights package – he’s unbelievable with some of the stuff he does. Even the players from opposition teams shake their head, so he’s got a super amount of talent and we’re excited by what he can produce, once he pulls it all together and he becomes a complete player.”

Farewell Flash
Reigning club best and fairest winner Nathan Jones, who is right in the mix to win his second award this year, paid tribute to another former winner: 2009 recipient Aaron Davey, who played his last match for the Demons against the Dogs.

Jones said Davey had “transformed the game” with his small forward play in the early 2000s.

“He wound back the clock [against the Bulldogs] with some of the stuff he did, in particular the run down tackles and forward pressure – that’s where he made a name for himself,” he said.

“Words can’t describe a player like him, because he’s a best and fairest winner and all the players love him. He’s super, super talented and he lights it up. I’ve just been lucky to witness some of the stuff he’s done and some of the goals he’s kicked – even some of the hangers he’s taken.

“He’s been a great player for the footy club, and he’ll never be lost to us. All the players love him and he’s a real strong part of the history. It’s been a privilege to play with him and I wish him luck.

“He’s been a real leader for the Indigenous boys in particular, but the entire playing group feeds off him, particularly when he’s up and about – he could really spark us, so we’ve got big shoes to fill, whoever takes his spot or steps up in his place.

“He’s had a great career and I’ve been super happy to witness most of it, by playing alongside him.”

Fifth worst season over

Melbourne’s sorry 2013 finally came to a close against the Dogs. Unfortunately, it won’t look good in the history books either, given it was the club’s fifth worst season since it was a foundation VFL/AFL club member in 1897. Melbourne’s worst season was 1919, when it failed to win a match. In 1906, 1951 and 1981, it produced just one win. And in 1914 – like 2013 – it had just two victories. But back in 1914, Melbourne played just 18 matches, unlike the 22 this year.

Coaching speculation grows for Roos

Media speculation intensified over the weekend when one of the game’s greats – Paul Roos - was strongly linked to the Melbourne coaching role for 2014 and beyond. It was confirmed that Roos had met with the club’s leadership group in the lead up to its final clash against the Western Bulldogs. Although several coaches have been spoken to, it remains to be seen if the 2005 Sydney Swans premiership coach will join the competition’s oldest club. If he did coach the Demons, his appointment would be significant.