MATT Burgan looks at the key stats, moments and stories to emerge from round 16

Dees record fifth win for the season

Melbourne achieved something it had not done in four years – when the siren sounded with a 24-point victory over the Brisbane Lions at the MCG on Sunday – notch up its fifth win in a season. It mightn’t sound like much, but it is another important step in Melbourne’s journey – and a timely reminder of where it’s been in recent years. With seven more matches remaining in the season – and the fact that Melbourne hasn’t lost any more than three in a row this year (another pertinent reminder of what’s happened in recent times) – there are encouraging signs for the rest of 2015. Coach Paul Roos said it was important win, given Melbourne could’ve let it slip in previous matches. “I think it’s a reasonable point. I said to the players – because we’ve been working so hard over 18 months on defence – I thought our defence really kept us in the game. To keep a team to four goals – and I know they missed a few and we missed a few as well – is a great effort. It doesn’t matter who you play or where you play. And if the scoreboard’s not ticking over the other way, it keeps you in the game. We’ve also worked a lot on our ball use, particularly in the last six months. The first half was terrific – really good – seven goals to one is a great effort for this group. And the second half our defence stood up and our ball use dropped off and we were still able to come away with a four goal win.”

Five-match losing streak ends

Another important achievement in Melbourne’s win was the fact it ended a five-match losing streak against the Lions. Not since round three, 2011 had Melbourne defeated the Brisbane Lions. Again, it was another tick in the red and blue’s progress.

A top first half

Melbourne set up its win with 7.7 to 1.5 in the first half, gaining a 38-point lead at the main break. The Demons had nine scoring shots in the opening term, booting 5.4 to 1.2. It was a most impressive start and ultimately set up the victory.

… Followed by a frustrating second half

In many respects, it was a tale of two halves, with the Lions winning the second half 3.7 to 1.5. But given, the low-scoring nature of the match, particularly in the second half, the closest the Lions got back to the Demons in the final term was 20 points. That was when Lion Allen Christensen booted the first goal of the final term at the two-minute mark. Although Melbourne held the Lions off, having produced a far more convincing first half, it was a frustrating second half, which will be addressed.

Three goalkickers get the job done

Although Melbourne had nine players register scores, just three booted majors: Jesse Hogan (four goals), Jeff Garlett (two) and Tom McDonald (two). It’s certainly not a statistic that will be encouraged, but it reinforced the performance of Hogan up forward, the continued goalkicking traits of Garlett and McDonald’s ability to swing forward and make an impact.

Humble Hogan a hero again

Jesse Hogan was outstanding in the first term, booting three of Melbourne’s five goals. He finished with four for the match and took 11 marks, including three contested grabs. For someone who is just 20 years old – and has just 12 matches to his name – he is a remarkable player for someone so young.   

Howe flies high again

It was great to see Jeremy Howe play arguably his best game of the season. He took a few hangers – doesn’t he every week? But it was his work down back that was most impressive. He finished with 22 disposals, 13 marks, five tackles and four rebounds to reinforce why he is such an important part of an emerging Melbourne side.

Gawn going good

Since breaking back into the side against Collingwood in round 10, Max Gawn has been in impressive form. He was again critical in Melbourne’s win over the Lions, notching up 38 hit outs and taking some strong pack marks. He finished with four contested grabs and laid a couple of big tackles. Coach Paul Roos praised Gawn’s effort – and ruck coach Greg Stafford’s work with the Melbourne big men. “Around the footy you can’t be a ruckman. We saw the impact of [North Melbourne’s Todd] Goldstein on Friday night and we know the impact of [West Coast’s] Nic Natinui around the contest, so Greg Stafford has been working with our rucks really hard in the last 18 months. A lot of it’s not just the tap work – it’s about follow up around the ground. And Max did make a couple of really critical tackles, which slowed the momentum and got it back on our terms.”

The same 22 as last week … but a better result this time around

On the back of a disappointing nine-point loss to Essendon last round at the MCG, Paul Roos gave his charges another opportunity to bounce back. And he was rewarded – even if it was a scrappy match. “We were disappointed in some areas with the way we played last week, but we created a lot of turnovers. We had 58 inside 50s, which is the most we had all year and we won contested possessions. We weren’t rapt with our performance last week but we did kick 7.18. We felt like a lot of parts of our game were really strong. So we just thought we’d give this group a chance to redeem themselves and be on the winning side of the scoreboard.”

And now for St Kilda …

Melbourne will play St Kilda for the second time this year – next Sunday at the MCG. It will be the first time the Demons have played a team twice this year, after it was just over a month ago that the Dees went down to the Saints by two points at Etihad Stadium. This contest looms as another cracker between two teams in a very similar position – in terms of their future prospects and their age and match experience – and the winner will notch up their sixth win of the season. It should be a beauty – and a great opportunity for the Demons.