THROUGHOUT the week there has been a lot of discussion about the forward pressure applied by the Dees against Richmond in round 14.

Melbourne’s tally of 35 tackles inside their forward 50 was clearly a record this year, as was Ricky Petterd’s individual effort of 13.

But what many haven’t mentioned is the fact that a lot of this was brought about by Melbourne’s ability to create a number of forward stoppages. We all watched as the pressure built on the Tigers, and the tackle count climbed higher and higher as result.

The Dees created a total of 21 stoppages in their forward line, more than any other side last round. Twelve of them came in the frantic third term, in which the Demons kicked an inaccurate 2.10, but came out on top in a lot of the key statistics.

So it’s a classic “chicken or the egg scenario” when talking about tackles inside your forward 50.

One the one hand, you need to tackle well to create stoppages in the first place - you can’t just allow the opposition to gain control in the backline and possess their way into the midfield.

But on the other hand, unless you create forward stoppages you don’t always get an opportunity to tackle. Once you do, however, stoppages generally lead to more forward tackles.

Obviously there’s a school of thought, which suggests that you shouldn’t have too many forward stoppages in the first place - does it mean you’re either sending the ball wide towards the pockets, or your forwards aren’t marking the ball?

But when you have 63 inside 50s for the match, it’s inevitable that the ball will hit the ground or end up out of bounds.

The challenge for our forwards is to maintain their intensity so that they can create stoppages, put pressure on the opposition and ‘stick’ their tackles.

While Ricky Petterd’s effort of 14 tackles in total was outstanding, it was good to see all the forwards have an impact on the tackles stats - Colin Sylvia with six, Brad Green (five) and Jack Watts and Liam Jurrah with four each.

The other benefit to all the forward stoppages is that it often leads to a turnover in the midfield, simply because the opposition needs to get the ball out of your forward line as quickly as possible.

The Demons created 40 midfield turnovers against the Tigers, many of which were from a rushed Richmond kick out of defence.

James Frawley was the main beneficiary, intercepting two Richmond kicks and sending them straight back inside 50.

The fact that Frawley spent his time at full-back showed just how well the Dees were able to press up the ground.

There is also significant room for improvement.

Melbourne scored 1.2 from forward stoppages, so a lot of opportunities didn’t translate into a big portion of scoring. With time, the forwards and mids will be able to convert a lot more of those stoppages into scores.

When you look at the competition overall, it’s no secret that the top sides are adept at forward stoppage scoring.

The Demons have some work to do at scoring from forward throw-ins, but have kicked some important goals from this area in recent times.

The other seven sides currently in the top eight are at the top of the list, and wedged in between them are tonight’s opponents, the Western Bulldogs.

Friday night should be an interesting contest - there are some similarities between the sides, but also plenty of contrasting figures.

Both teams launch a lot of scores from their defensive 50.

Melbourne and the Dogs sit second and third respectively. The Bulldogs still favour their running style of game, leading the league in running bounces so far this season, but still face a challenge with their kicking efficiency.

With under 62 per cent of their kicks hitting the target, the Dogs sit 17th overall in effective kicking.

The Demons will aim to make it three in a row with the same style of game that has brought some great results so far this year.

And carrying on from last week, let’s hope there’s a whole heap of pressure up forward.

See you all there.

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