JESSE Hogan had another off day against the Western Bulldogs on Sunday, but Melbourne coach Paul Roos isn't concerned with the young star's wayward kicking.
Hogan managed 1.3 in the 32-point loss and his stuttering run-up and inconsistent execution in front of the big sticks has again come under focus.
The poor return in front of goal comes two weeks after the 21-year-old kicked 7.1 against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium in round six.
Hogan has now kicked 62 goals and 33 behinds since making his AFL debut in round one, 2015.
"Technically we're not too worried about it at the moment because over a short sample base he's been pretty good," Roos said.
"When it becomes a problem you start to address it. But over the course of his career, which is short, his accuracy has been pretty good."
Five talking points: Melbourne v Western Bulldogs
It is not the first time Hogan's goalkicking has been called into question this season with Melbourne legend David Schwarz labelling his kicking a "disgrace" after an indifferent day in a NAB Challenge game against St Kilda in March.
Roos said Hogan was a confidence player and often benefits from nailing his first couple of shots on goal.
Bulldogs pair Fletcher Roberts and Dale Morris both played a part in curtailing Hogan's influence, often forcing him to take contested marks from tight angles.
"Goalkicking is often mental," Roos said.
"The majority of forwards are confidence kicks. If they miss their first, then often they can miss a couple in a row."
At the other end of the ground, the Demons could not stop emerging Bulldogs forward Jack Redpath, who ran rampant with three goals and seven marks inside 50.
At the selection table, Roos and his match committee decided to go with Tom McDonald as their primary tall in defence with the mid-sized Colin Garland to provide back-up.
The Demons decided to overlook Oscar McDonald, who has missed VFL games with a concussion and an ankle injury this season, and Lynden Dunn. Both would have been suitable options to play as the second tall defender on Sunday.
"It's hard because we're trying to play form players and guys who deserve to be picked," Roos said.
"Oscar probably hasn't had a lot of continuity and he's been in and out of the team through injury.
"In hindsight another tall would have been good but you want them coming in in really good form."
WATCH Paul Roos' full media conference here
Despite being smashed in contested ball (155-126) and uncontested possessions (271-247), Roos was pleased with the fight his side demonstrated late in the game.
The Demons kicked five goals in the final term to peg the margin back to 32 points.
"We were beaten by a better team," Roos said.
"The good thing, being a pretty young team, I liked the way we kept playing. We kept on fighting it out. We made them earn it."
"At the end of the day we didn't think we played great but at least we made them play some good footy to win."
Roos said he and his coaching staff would have to look at making some changes to the side ahead of next Sunday's clash against the Brisbane Lions.
The Dees' VFL affiliate the Casey Scorpions have had a number of strong performances over the past few weeks, with Alex Neal-Bullen, Jack Grimes, Jack Trengove and Ben Newton all likely to come into the selection mix.
