MELBOURNE vice-captain Aaron Davey has refuted teammate James Frawley's claim that the Demons gave up in last Saturday's loss to North Melbourne.

The Demons lost by seven goals after leading at half-time, presenting North Melbourne with its second win of the season.

Frawley said after the game that the Demons gave up, but Davey said he was sure that if he had his time again, Frawley would choose his words differently.

"James is a pretty passionate player and I think that was more that he didn't think before he spoke, because we had a disappointing result. He obviously didn't mean it," Davey said on Tuesday.

"It's just one of those things in the heat of the moment, when things boil up and you don't think through it. We didn't give up. Full credit to the Kangaroos, they came out and played good footy for longer periods than what we did."

Davey said he was disappointed the Demons could not carry through the momentum of the previous week's 96-point thumping of Adelaide.

He said it was hard to pinpoint why the Demons couldn't hold onto their form, suggesting it was down to the players' mindset.

"I reckon it would be an attitude thing. When things are going well, it's amazing how everything falls into place, which we saw in the first quarter on Saturday," he said.

"To the Kangaroos' credit, they fought back and held in there to outplay us in the end. We've just got to play with that mindset of four quarters of footy."

Melbourne takes on an out-of-sorts St Kilda at Etihad Stadium this week but will have to change two trends if they are to knock off last year's Grand Finalists.

The Demons have lost their past five encounters with St Kilda, having not beaten them since the 2006 elimination final, which was Grant Thomas' last as coach of the Saints.

They have also lost their past nine games at Etihad Stadium.

Davey said he paid little attention to claims his side struggled when playing under the roof at Etihad Stadium.

"That's something that everyone beats up in the media. Footy ovals are footy ovals. If you don't come with the right attitude to play week in, week out, these things tend to happen," he said.

 Luke Holmesby covers Melbourne news for afl.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_LHolmesby.