MELBOURNE coach Dean Bailey admits he faces a tough task in keeping his players focused this weekend after news of Jim Stynes' battle with cancer rocked the club.
The Demons face West Coast on Saturday at the MCG where the popular president's plight will be an obvious motivating factor, according to the coach.
"The emotion side of it is going to be the real key," Bailey said from Junction Oval on Friday. "We don't want the players to have played the game before they get there.
"We've got to make sure the focus is on winning the contested ball and winning the game. We don't want to overstate it and we don't want to understate it because Jim has been such a revelation to the club.
"He's brought trust and integrity beyond what we would think [possible]. We do need to rally around him and support him. There's no doubt about that and the way the players can do that is to really perform well.
"The players have got a genuine resolve. It's been building during the week and then the news on Jim added a bit more impetus to it, but we've got to make sure that we control what we can and that's play well, be competitive and win the game."
Given the circumstances leading up to the match, Bailey said it would be fair for supporters to expect much greater intensity on Saturday than his side had been able to muster during the past three disappointing losses.
"If you're going to turn up to the game tomorrow and watch Melbourne play you want to see them fight and you want to see them competitive from the first second to the last second," he said.
"The added emotion around the game has been built and we need to ensure we embrace that, but also actually play the game."
Bailey reacted to last weekend's loss to the Brisbane Lions by having his players jump into an icy Port Phillip Bay on two separate occasions, but the coach characterised the drill as a challenge rather than a punishment.
"Their freestyle was pretty good - they wanted to get out pretty quick I think," he said.
"It was a bit more than jumping in and jumping out. Those sorts of things can really challenge players … none of them would have liked it … but we're all in it together.
"It's more a matter of keeping their minds on the job and saying 'we're not happy where we're at'. There's a minimum standard that you must get to and at the moment we're not at that – the training was a reflection of that."
Jack Watts will not take the field after suffering through the week with gastro and migraines, but Bailey revealed the No.1 draft pick would have kept his spot in the side if fit despite his indifferent form.
