MELBOURNE coach Simon Goodwin is delighted the Demons faithful will have a chance to watch their team in finals action after '12 years of misery'.
The Demons secured their first finals berth since 2006 with a pulsating 17-point win against West Coast at Optus Stadium on Sunday.
Tested by countless challenges from a spirited Eagles outfit, Melbourne quashed scars of last year's disastrous slip-up at the final hurdle to outrun its opponents in balmy Perth conditions.
DEES INTO FINALS Full match coverage and stats
Goodwin's men – now seventh with the second-highest percentage in the League – will book a home final if they beat GWS at the MCG next week and could finish as high as fourth if Fremantle upsets Collingwood at Optus Stadium.
"I'm just so happy for our supporters right now. They've had 12 years of misery but now they've got a team that they can really get in behind and support and build some momentum from here," an emotional Goodwin said post-match.
"Clearly as a club we've had a lot of expectation put on us and not playing finals for 12 years, we carry a lot of that expectation as a team.
"This has been a new playing group for a while now and they've carried that expectation and they've owned it.
"There's been a lot of challenges along the way, but to continue to stay in the moment like they did today was terrific … It's a big step for our footy club and a really important one and something they should be incredibly proud of."
Though vastly improved, Melbourne landed in Perth looking to dispel several questions surrounding its credentials.
The Demons entered the clash winless against the competition's top nine sides and had dropped five of six games decided by two goals or less.
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But Goodwin never wavered in his belief the team would stand up when it counted.
"Not at one stage did I feel that our boys weren't engaged in the game and weren't playing the way that they've been trained to play," Goodwin said.
"We've spoken about these moments the whole way through and we talk about learnings all the time – about being able to actually absorb those moments and learn from them and get better at them.
"That was a really pleasing part – the will to win and the will to own the moment and the will to continue playing our way was really strong.
"I think it's a step for our footy club. Obviously it's emotional because as a coach (and) as a playing group, you feel that expectation.
"You feel that added pressure because we have had 12 years without playing finals and that playing group hasn't been a part of that for a long time.
"They've had to own that expectation, and deal with it and get better at it.
"From that perspective it's a big step for our footy club and one we should be proud of but we've still got a lot of work to do.
"We can build some momentum from here and we're playing some extra footy."
WATCH Simon Goodwin's full post-match press conference
Melbourne emerged from the match without any injuries and remains focused on closing out the season strongly, despite the possibility of a double chance.
"All year we've just focused on our next game and I know it's cliché, but we're playing a really strong footy club in GWS," Goodwin said.
"That's an opportunity to get better again. We've used every week at our club, whether we've won or we've lost, to actually get better and improve and that'll be our aim next week."
