NATHAN Jones says the club is already turning its attention to Sunday’s clash against the Western Bulldogs at the MCG.
Despite the emphatic 73-point win over the Gold Coast Suns at Metricon Stadium on Saturday, Jones said the players were already starting to look ahead to round eight.
“We’ll review some of the areas we can improve on and we’ve already got our heads into the Doggies, because we really respect them as a team,” he said at the MCG on Monday morning.
“They’re talked up offensively, but we’re well aware of how well they compete around the ball and they’re terrific in the contest.
“They’re really stringent in their defence and not allowing many teams to score against them – I think they’re one of the best teams in the competition at that.
“We’re well aware of the challenge we’ve got ahead and we’ll definitely have to be at our best to compete against such a terrific up-and-coming outfit.”
Jones said it was “exciting to respond the way we did” against the Suns after going down to St Kilda by 39 points at Etihad Stadium in round six.
“It was the exact way we were expecting after a really disappointing effort the week before against St Kilda,” he said.
“I felt like we prepared ourselves really well and went up to the Gold Coast with a job to do and we did it in the best possible fashion.”
Jones said Melbourne was able to bounce back after a disappointing 13-point loss to Essendon at the MCG in round two.
“We strung three games together and then we lost our way a little bit against St Kilda, but got back on track,” he said.
“It was a sign of a team that can respond, but consistency is the challenge.
“On the weekend, we fielded one of the youngest sides for the round and that showed we’re still in that development phase. It’s a credit to our coaching staff and the education that they’re doing with our players.
“For us to stay on track, we’ve got to keep the finger on the pulse and make sure we’re prepared in the best possible fashion and ready for every challenge every week.”