Green kicked three of Melbourne’s eight first-quarter goals to set up the win. It was a rare strong start from the Demons, who have been slow out of the blocks in quite a few matches this season.
“I didn’t see it coming," Green said after his team's 73-point demolition of the top-eight team.
"We had to put pressure on them to start the game off well. They came out of the blocks against Carlton last week and we haven’t started well in many games this year so it’s great to start off the game.”
The Demons had identified their sluggish starts as a cause for concern and tinkered with their preparation to address the problem. But Green said there was no special trick for Sunday’s burst out of the blocks.
“We’ve tried little things, we’ve had a later warm-up, we’ve started earlier but today it was normal," he said.
"It was a mental approach more than anything. You’ve got to come ready to play and put the onus on yourself."
Green finished with five goals for the day, giving him a total of 42 for the season which is the most he has ever kicked in one year since debuting in 2000.
Normally used as either a wingman or a forward target, Green said he enjoyed alternating between the roles.
“You tend to go down there when you get older and slower rather than in the midfield. I love the flexibility of going in both areas,” he said.
“I love the midfield and the forward line. If you’re not going so great in one area it’s great to have the versatility in your game to play in both areas. I want to do both.”
One of Green’s goals was lucky to be paid as it appeared to skim the goal post on the way through.
When asked after the game if it was a goal, Green conceded he may have been given the benefit of what appeared to be little doubt.
“I was a bit lucky there wasn’t I? I’ll take that one. You get the good side and the bad side and we got the good one today,” he said.
