A tale of two halves

Melbourne got off to a strong start in Alice Springs, looking the better side in the early stages of its Round 6 clash with the Blues.

With plenty of run through the centre, the Dees took an eight-point lead into the main break, but that’s where the dominance ended.

Carlton kicked back-to-back goals to start the third term, shifting the momentum of the game and taking a narrow lead into the final change.

With two down on the bench, Melbourne couldn’t keep up with the young Blues side, going goalless in the second half to suffer a 16-point loss.

The bounce of the ball

While the Demons couldn’t hit the scoreboard, it wasn’t due to a lack of effort.

The girls peppered the sticks towards the end of the third quarter but couldn’t seem to get the ball going through, with the Sherrin seeming to bounce the wrong way on numerous occasions.

Hore’s spectacular finish

Kate Hore provided the highlight of the night – if not the season.

When the 24-year-old received a handball on the wing in the opening term, she probably wasn’t expecting to put through one of the goals of the year.

Fast forward 20 seconds, she had taken three bounces, linked up with Niamh McEvoy, and snapped a beauty from the pocket to lift her teammates.

A lockout in Alice

The coronavirus is having an impact on not just football, but the entire world.

On Saturday night, it forced the AFLW to be played behind closed doors, which was a disappointing outcome for the Demons who were looking forward to performing in front of the locals in the NT.

More injury trouble

It’s been the story of Melbourne’s year, and it continued on the weekend.

Sinead Goldrick copped a corked quad in the second term, before Sarah Lampard went down with a knee injury in the third.

Shaping Conference B

The loss to Carlton had a double effect for the Demons, seeing them fall to third position in Conference B.

Now a game behind the Blues and equal on points with the fourth-position Pies, Melbourne will have to win one, if not both, of its last two games to qualify for finals.

Coming up

Challenges don’t come much greater than Fremantle in Perth, but that’s what the Dees face next weekend.

The undefeated Dockers will be a tough task, with a crucial four points on the line.