Surprise result
Melbourne may not have expected to win on Friday afternoon, and while the result isn’t important in a practice match, the club would have been pleased with its performance at Arden Street.
The Dees claimed a 20-point win, but it was the way they went about it which was so impressive.
While North Melbourne’s side was equally as undermanned, the Demons played a strong brand of footy with some young boys successfully filling some big roles.
Young Demons impress
After being left out of the first Marsh Series game, Trent Rivers pulled on the red and blue for the first official time since being drafted to the club, and he certainly impressed.
The 18-year-old took the kick outs for the Dees and used his penetrating right boot to open up the game.
At the other end of the field, Kysaiah Pickett brought the excitement, creating scoring opportunities through his pace and pressure.
Toby Bedford was just as important in the small forward role, while Category B rookie Angus Bradtke fought manfully in the ruck against a bigger Tristan Xerri.
In the centre, James Jordon and Tom Sparrow both showed their capability at the level with their work around the contest.
Brayshaw’s return
Angus Brayshaw played his first game for 2020, returning from an elbow injury which had kept him out of main training.
But the midfielder, who has still been able to get plenty of run in his legs over the off-season, looked right at home in the second half, changing the game when he was thrown on ball.
Jake Melksham and Adam Tomlinson also got through the first half unscathed as they got some additional minutes under their belt.
Gus is ready for his first hit-out of the year. ??#GoDees pic.twitter.com/SChPfyFTPc
— Melbourne Demons (@melbournefc) February 28, 2020
Strong in defence
The Demons conceded just eight scores for the entirety of the contest, with Oscar McDonald, Josh Wagner, Marty Hore and Jay Lockhart leading a young backline.
But it was the team-defence which would’ve pleased the Melbourne coaches on Friday, with a buy-in across the board helping lock the Kangas down and force them into errors in the back-half of the ground.
Missed opportunities
The only downfall to the Dees’ game was its accuracy in front of goal.
While the Demons have been working on the issue which proved so prevalent in 2019, they missed 13 of their 20 shots against the Roos.
Bayley Fritsch was the shining light up forward, reading the ball to perfection in the air, but he too struggled to convert his chances.
Eight Casey Demons
With just 17 Melbourne-listed players available for the game, the Dees enlisted the help of eight VFL players who contributed to the result.
It was a great opportunity for some Casey Demons youngsters to test themselves against the best, with the likes of Mitch Lewis and James Munro holding their own in a strong performance.
Coming up
Melbourne has one more hit-out lined up prior to its Round 1 trip to Perth.
The Demons will be heading to Launceston for a Friday night clash with Hawthorn, as fans hope to see Max Gawn and Steven May take to the field prior to the season proper.
