Well, nobody’s ever accused me of being a smart man.
With that in mind, I’ll let you in on a little secret. I’m sitting here at my computer at 11pm, about to start writing the review for the Dees’ win over the Roos, in what was a pretty fun match to watch, wind aside (at the game… not my wind). But the truth is, I got all discombobulated and started to review the Swans versus Saints game.
I got 2K words in before someone sent me the review for that game, meaning that I had to check what I was doing and… turns out I was the person doing the Dees v North game.
What…
An…
Idiot!
Complete professional, of course. Devilisly handsome, as well… but still an idiot.
And so, I settled back in for a rewatch, because to be completely upfront, the first time around, I had the kids in the room, they were screwing up and demanding to put Bluey on the TV, they were dropping food and spilling drinks, and I was watching, but not taking everything in.
You can’t do a review justice with that stuff going on.
So, I beat them soundly and sent them to bed.
Just kidding… I didn’t send them to bed – it was way too early.
I sat back and had another look, and because I am running so late with it, I am leaving this open for everyone. As stupid as I can be, I try not to allow that to rub off on the work I provide you guys.
Onto The Mongrel’s Talking Points from this one.
ON THE FRITSCH
Bayley Fritsch has been a bit of a whipping boy at Melbourne over the past few years. Even when he was kicking bags of goals, it always seemed to be about what he wasn’t providing, as opposed to how good he was at hitting the scoreboard.
Two straight seasons of 50+ goals saw him become a premiership player. Then he dropped off a bit.
38 in 2023.
41 in 2024.
And this season, he is sitting on just 22 with six games remaining.
He’s been dropped, criticised, and derided by AFL and Demon fans alike.
But he gave everyone a reminder of what he is capable of in this one, with his best performance of the season, and one of the more complete games of his career.
Collecting 21 touches, kicking three goals, and dishing three direct goal assists, Fritsch ticked all boxes for the Melbourne faithful, as he picked up the slack following a slow first quarter.
What would you do with Fritsch if the Dees are going to look at rebuilding in the next couple of years? He is 28 years of age, has good footy left in him, but will likely not see Melbourne rewarded with a King’s ransom to part with his services.
I am a bit of a fan of blowing up the midfield, as evidenced by a column I wrote during the week. With players like Harvey Langford knocking on the door, it might just be about time the Dees opened up and let him in. But up forward, I reckon Fritsch is the type of player you have to retain because he forced the defence to remain honest. You don’t allow him space, because he hurts you, so he automatically takes a defender whenever he goes.
If you choose not to follow, you do so at your own peril.
Whilst I have heard some Demon supporters express their wish to trade Fritsch and get what they can in terms of picks, I strongly believe he is worth more to the Dees than they will receive in compensation for his departure.
He is a goal-kicker in a team that struggles to score. Players like him do not grow on trees, and as the Dees look to invest in JvR and whoever else they earmark as a potential forward addition, Fritsch will make things just that little bit easier for them.
And he’ll do that by being great at what he does – not by being poor at what he doesn’t. Time to cut this bloke some slack and allow him to play good footy, again.
MAX SEWS UP THE NUMBER ONE SPOT IN THE AA TEAM
Earlier this year, things got a little messy when the Roos played the Dees.
Well, more than a little messy, on more than a few fronts.
That game was what it was, and the Roos gave the Dees a nice touch up late in the contest, but one of the big talking points out of the game was the way Tristan Xerri handled Max Gawn. Some hailed it as a changing of the guard, and it prompted Simon Goodwin to mention that Max was going through some personal stuff.
He mentioned that publicly, in what was a serious error in judgment. Since then, Gawn has been tearing up the ruck, with a string of games that saw him re-establish himself as the premier big man in the sport.
Yet, still, plenty hitched their wagon to Xerri, claiming the age of Gawn was at an end.
It might be time they reconsider.
Whatever Gawn had going on last time, it was clear he meant business coming into this game. He outworked Xerri both in the ruck and around the ground, with the North big becoming frustrated by his inability to influence the contest the way he is used to doing.
It was an expert class in positioning and hit outs to advantage by Gawn, who set up his mids to win a +5 clearance advantage over the course of the game. He also snuck forward and snagged a goal – a booming fifty-metre bomb on the back of several misses by North. That type of kick was a captain’s goal, and a heartbreaker for North after squandering their own opportunities.
Gawn will go on to claim his eighth All-Australian blazer this season. It’ll tie him with a fair few as the “most capped” player in the game.
And it is bloody well deserved.
ADDENDUM TO THE ABOVE SECTION
Lots of talk tonight about the incident that saw Tristan Xerri concuss Tom Sparrow.
Jay Clark… the man who has a gig on TV despite no real discernable talent or relatability, was basically trying to hang Xerri and get him weeks before he was even cited. Can’t stand that bloke…
Anyway, nobody likes seeing players hurt. In this day and age, in particular, nobody likes seeing someone concussed. Watching it in real-time gives a very different perspective to the slo-mo everyone will use. Xerri comes straight out of the ruck contest, and his arm collects Sparrow. I think it was accidental, but I am not sure that matters when a bloke gets concussed.
It’s a very interesting one to watch, as people have been very critical of action versus outcome-based decisions. In this case, the action was inoccuous, but the outcome was horrible.
Over to you, MRO.
DON’T MESS WITH THE ZURHAAR… AT LEAST FOR ONE QUARTER
For a period in the third quarter, Cam Zurhaar looked like ‘The Man’ for the Kangaroos.
A couple of weeks back, we saw Nick Larkey go off in the first quarter, as the Roos celebrated their V/AFL centenary. It was brilliant to watch, and this was pretty damn impressive, as well, as Cam Zurhaar went to work on the Dees.
If not for some inaccuracy (that wind!) we may have been talking about Zurhaar’s third quarter as the period of the game that changed everything. As it turns out, he kicked 3.2 from seven touches and looked like he had channeled Wayne Carey out there.
Seriously, I watch the proverbial shitload of footy, and there are not too many times when one player struts around the forward fifty like he knows he has it over his opponents. Everyone at the top level can play, but Zurhaar had more than just a bit of that about him, as he marked out-positioned, and flat out beat anyone unlucky enough to have him as their direct opponent.
I know North fans love Nick Larkey. He can kick snags with the best of them, but he doesn’t have this type of presence. With it, he’d be the biggest star in the game.
As it stands, Zurhaar’s third quarter heroics constituted his input for the entire game.
Yep, that was it – an inspired quarter of footy that could have, and perhaps should have, inspired those around him to greater heights.
Instead, it was one great quarter of footy surrounded by three pretty lousy ones.
SIGNS OF LIFE IN JVR
Did you see what I saw?
All year, I have been lamenting my pre-season hopes that Jacob van Rooyen would emulate the feats of Josh Treacy at Freo last season. Treacy jumped out of the box, and he did so with a pierce attack on the footy. I’ve seen elements of that in van Rooyen’s game, as well.
But not enough of it.
He still seems in the stage where the contact really impacts his ability to judge the ball, and even when he does get two hands to it, the footy tends to spill out. Treacy is clunking those marks, and JvR needs to do it, as well. Even if he doesn’t mark it, he needs to make sure the opposition doesn’t, either.
And that’s what I saw in this one, as van Rooyen took a couple of contested grabs, but more importantly, his the packs hard. It’s amazing… I felt relieved after watching him do that, as though my belief in him was being justified right before my eyes. I can only imagine that Dees supporters felt the same?
Jacob is now 22. I did expect him to have a big year in 2025, but maybe I was a little premature (it happens, ladies… we’re sorry). I’m going to back this kid to come good and grow into the centrepiece of the Melbourne forward setup for years to come.
Right now, he is like me in woodwork class. All the tools are right there – he just cannot use them properly. Unlike me in woodwork class, I think Jacob will put those tools to good use, and become quite the craftsman in the Demon forward line.
A GOOD TAG, OR JUST GOOD LUCK?
Will Phillips on Kyasaiah Pickett was an interesting watch, if only because I felt that Pickett had the chance to really put Phillips to the sword in the early going, but comletely fluffed his lines in front of goal.
Watching Pickett take Phillips to the goal square – a place where he is completely out of his depth – was the type of move that could have blown the game open. As it stood, only Pickett’s inaccuracy prevented him from having three on the board and giving the Dees a catapult forward.
I guess, sometimes it is better to be lucky than good, and watcing Pickett’s shots at goal miss by large margins, I reckon Phillips was feeling mighty lucky the wind was a little bit difficult to deal with out there.
A CHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCK
Watching the way North have handled the development of Cooper Harvey has been interesting. The kid is obviously a forward, and we saw exactly why in this game, but Alastair Clarkson has obviously had concerns with the defensive side of his game, which has seen him played off half-back at times in the VFL.
Well, can we put that experiment to bed?
You can dress a forward up whichever way you please. Whack a dress on him, make him wear a duck suit, cover him with petals and call him a flower if you want, but underneath it all, he’ll still be a forward.
And Cooper Harvey is a forward.
Given the opportunity to get close to goal, Harvey demonstrated that he can be effective in the role, and in a team like North, who needs all the firepower they can muster, having Harvey slam through three last-quarter goals to emphasise his potential… it kind of leaves little doubt that his future in the game is up forward.
With him, Zurhaar, and Paul Curtis across half-forward, the Kangaroos could be potent in 2026.
A TIMELINE FOR MELKSHAM
Can someone let Jake Melksham know that he is 33 years old?
I don’t expect him to take much notice of you – he seems completely locked in on doing his job right now, and that is slotting goals for the Melbourne Football Club. He added another five in this game, taking his season tally to 25 for the year, and more impressively, 14 in his last three weeks.
Has someone just done a really good job of dressing up David Neitz in a Jake Melksham costume? This is bloody ridiculous!
It wasn’t all that long ago that Melksham’s future was up in the air. Coming off an ACL injury, nothing was guaranteed for him, but he has done the work, improved his game, and is now the most reliable option the Dees have in front of the sticks.
I did not have that on my 2025 Bingo Card.
It’s now inevitable that Melksham goes on next season. He’s an unrestricted free agent after this year, but will not cost the Dees and arm or a leg to retain his services for 12 months more. Having him and Bayley Fritsch as presences in forward fifty as Jacob van Rooyen continues to mature, will be something that aids the young forward, particularly when he requires those around him to draw some heat away from him.
A DISSENTING VIEW
So, I know it was a win to the Dees, and we all high five and play grab-ass with each other. Yay!
But I am not sure I want to be seeing Xavier Lindsay subbed out of games late in the season, when there is no real benefit in doing so.
Furthermore, he was subbed out for Caleb Windsor, so you have what could potentially be two of the foundation players of your next successful side playing limited minutes, whilst veterans who will definitely not be there for the next run, are playing the whole game out?
Does that make a lot of sense to you?
I get that Lindsay wasn’t exactly tearing it up out there. In fact, if I was aksed to describe his game, I might say that it sucked a fat one, but i’d be more inclined, given the state of the Melbourne list, to allow him to play through this period, and maybe find form as the game opens up.
Ditto for Windsor. He played almost an hour of game time, and had one touch.
Results like this don’t build the confidence of these players. Rewind a little bit, and Windsor looked like a world beater on the wing. Seriously, there were games where he was so balanced and legitimately appeared as though he belonged out there. And now… he looks lost.
I reckon the Dees need to make a call on these two. Either you put them in the teams and play them regardless of how well they’re travelling. Or you put them back in the twos and have them work on their games there.
Thoughts, Dees fans?
AND THE LOGUE GOES TO…
Look, this might come across as harsh, but I think it’s about time.
North have not got what they paid for with Griffin Logue. There… I said it.
I was a fan of his at Freo. I just thought they had their defensive players set, and that was that – Luke Ryan, Alex Pearce, and Brennan Cox. Logue was the next in line, but was better than that role.
And so, he headed to North. Once here, I expected him to build on that which he’d shown at Freo, but the ACL injury sidelined him, and it has been pretty bloody ordinary since then.
Is he not a key defender? Is he more suited to playing that loose third defender type of role?
Maybe he is, but North don’t have the luxury of an elite first two key defenders, at the moment. Besides, I’d much prefer Charlie Comben as the bloke floating across packs to take clunks – I am not sure Logue has the mobility to do it, anymore.
Look, I am a patient man, and I would love to see another full pre-season for Griffin Logue to get his legs under him and attack the 2026 season unhindered. Maybe that’s the key to him becoming what I, and you as well, I’m guess, thought he’d be at North. Because right now, he out there, often playing off his man, and the Roos are getting very little return on their investment.
I remember hearing him say in an interview that he owed the club. I agree. Time to start paying them back.
SOME REAL QUICKIES
Another solid outing from Harvey Langford. Very difficult not to love what he is putting together this season. It’ll make any off-season departures sting a little less.
Great game from Tiom McDonald in defence. Just ate up intercepts like they were steaks.
You think if North could play all their high draft picks at half-back, they would? McKercher is back there, now. O’Sullivan drifts back quite a bit. Sheezel likes to accumulate backward of centre. Tom Powell is not a high pick, and it is him doing the grunt work in the guts.
Haven’t even mentioned Chrustian Petracca, yet. Bloke topped the disposal count, topped the contested possession count, and had seven clearances, and I fit him into the “quickies” section?
I guess that’s what you get when the bar is set so high for you.
I’m digging what Kyle Chandler is offering the Dees this season. As a high half-forward or wingman, he gets dangerous, and I like that about him. Also, if I ever had a kid I wanted to be a soap star, I’d name him Kyle Chandler, and I’d get him to practice a smouldering look into the camera. It’s a great name.
And that might just do me. I know I missed a few shots, but we must remember, I am an idiot, and I did write two thirds of a review for a game I wasn’t even covering!
I’m not blaming anyone… because that anyone would be me. Let’s share the blame, and move onto next week.
Speaking of next week, the Roos face the Swans. Given their season is still mathematically alive, Sydney should account for them at the SCG.
Meanwhile, the Dees face the Blues in a contest pitting perhaps the two most disappointing teams of the season against each other. It’s Disappoitnment-Bowl 2025. Who you got?
As always, massive thanks to those who support this work. You can see the amount of care that goes into it. I love footy, I love writing about it, and I hope you enjoy reading it. Without you, this whole thing falls over. Sincerely… thank you – HB
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