DEFENDER Lynden Dunn has been lauded as Melbourne’s most consistent player, according to co-captain Jack Grimes.

Dunn, who has become one of Melbourne’s most integral players in the past year, was highlighted by Grimes as the player to have improved in recent times. 

“One guy I think has taken his game to a new level – and he probably goes unnoticed at times – is Lynden Dunn,” he told Dee TV.

“I think he’s probably the most consistent player we have at the club and I know he probably doesn’t get the recognition by the media and the fans, but the jobs he does each week on the opponents he plays on – he just seems to get the job done and he very rarely gets beaten.

“He’s such a weapon with his kick out of defence and he’s been using that really well. His defensive game is so sound at the moment that we feel we could put him on any player at the moment and he’d just beat him.

“He’s played on some big names now and he’s really got the job done. Credit to him – he does a lot of work away from the field and on the track. He does a lot of stuff to help his game.

“We forget he was always a forward, but the last couple of years, he’s become one of our most consistent defenders, so it’s great to see him resurrect his career.”

Grimes said the acquisition of midfielder Dom Tyson from Greater Western Sydney had also been significant for the Demons.

 “The way he goes about his footy in the midfield – we need that inside ball winner like him and he’s just so strong for such a young guy. He uses it really well in close and [has] a lot of composure,” he said.

“It’s no fluke that he’s playing like that, because the way he attacked pre-season and the way he trains is exactly the way he plays, so it’s a real credit to him that he’s getting the results that he put in over pre-season, because he worked hard and on a lot of areas of his game and he still is at the moment.

“Even though he’s playing really good footy, he’s still not comfortable at all and he’s still working on all those areas.”

Grimes said the change of Jeremy Howe – from high-flying forward to an aerialist down back – had been a key move by coach Paul Roos.

“It has been really good for him,” he said.

“What we’ve liked about Howey – and I know the crowd and the fans notice the high-flying marks back there – but he’s actually defending really well and he’s come along way with his game. He’s defending first and not just trying to take the big marks. He’s not just trying to get the ball in his hands – he’s actually beating his man first, which is really good.

“He’s beginning to understand the role a lot more and help out us other guys around him as well, because coming down [in the backline] at first, he was a little bit lost, because he hadn’t played as much down there.

“His transformation in the last few weeks has been really, really good to see and it is a real weapon when there is a high ball and he’s the third man coming across and taking the mark or spoiling it. It’s a huge weapon for us to have as a backline.

“If he keeps defending it the way he is at the moment, I think Jade Rawlings will struggle to let him go back in the forward line.”

Meanwhile, Grimes said the players would love Roos to remain as coach for as long as he wanted, but it wasn’t an issue they got involved in. He said the players had great faith in Roos as he “hasn’t changed his message one bit since the start”.

“We’re only nine rounds in to his first season and we are starting to see some of the improvements come out on game day,” he said.

“We’re not thinking ‘how long’s this got to go for – three, two or four years – who knows?’ There’s still a lot left in this year, so there really isn’t much talk about it and I haven’t approached him about it and I don’t think any of the other players have.

“I think he knows that we’d like him to stay – we’d love him to stay – for a bit longer, but we’ll wait and see how that pans out. It’s just great to see that his constant message over the whole time has always remained so consistent.”