MELBOURNE coach Dean Bailey says stability plus a fit-and-firing playing list are the keys to the club's long-term success.
Speaking exclusively to melbournefc.com.au, Bailey said Melbourne had already put foundations in place for a positive future, although the club was still facing a tough battle on and off the field.
"You're going to get sick of me saying this, but we need to be healthy, fit and winning to being competitive – that's really important," Bailey said.
"We're rebuilding the club but that offers great challenges and great rewards. Jimmy (Stynes) has been able to offer great stability no doubt and 'Schwabby' (Cameron Schwab) has offered some great experience.
"In the next year or two, there is still going to be a bit of change until it is completely stable, but that's exciting. There is already stability from what Jimmy has done and I think the future is going to be built around our 18 to 25 year old players.
"So we need to get our players healthy, fit and competitive, plus get some stability in the club and we're still working towards that. With Jimmy and 'Schwaby', we're making some really good strides. Hopefully our members and supporters, plus our future members and supporters will see that."
Bailey said improvements had been made during his second pre-season at the helm.
"Last year we had an inefficient program. This year, we've got an efficient program, so that's a massive change," he said.
"Last year is last year. This year we're better prepared. We can actually train more often and test the players under match-like conditions, because we've got more [injury-free] players.
"We're rebuilding a list, but if you think you can rebuild a list, really quickly and overnight, you leave the foundations pretty brittle and they'll crumble at some stage.
"Most clubs that have successful years don't play 40 players. They play less than that. We hope we can have a more successful year. The sizes of the losses last year were not good enough."
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