MELBOURNE should draw some inspiration from the Brisbane Lions as it approaches the remainder of the season.
Interim coach Neil Craig said the Demons needed to take a winning mindset into every remaining game, saying the Lions' shock win over Geelong last Sunday was fuelled by their positive mindset.
The Lions came from 52 points down late in the third quarter to beat Geelong by five points with a goal after the siren.
"Last week Brisbane's winning attitude got them back into the game and they had a fantastic result," Craig said on Friday.
"It they went into the game purely with a development mode, they wouldn’t have got that result."
Melbourne hosts the Western Bulldogs at the MCG on Saturday night in what shapes as one of the Demons' few remaining winnable games.
"It's important for the rest of the year that we take the field with an attitude that we are trying to win," Craig said.
"It's really easy to fall into the trap with our situation that it doesn’t matter and it's all about development, but I would argue that development can also be about winning attitude and to play with winning attitude, irrespective of the scoreboard," he said.
Craig has largely kept faith in the side that lost to St Kilda by 35 points last Saturday. Defender James Frawley returns from injury, while ruckman Max Gawn comes in for the suspended Jake Spencer. Cam Pedersen is the only omission.
He said strong performances for VFL affiliate Casey Scorpions would be the main consideration for players seeking senior selection for the rest of the season.
Craig was also asked about whether the Demons deserved a priority draft selection at the end of the season, amid comments from Lions coach Michael Voss that he would be "disturbed" if Melbourne did receive the selection. Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney also said he supported Voss's point of view.
"I understand where they're coming from. It’s a highly competitive environment," Craig said.
"But teams that finish towards the bottom of the ladder have the opportunity to make a presentation to an independent commission.
"There will be commentary from other clubs, but that's the benefit of having an independent commission and I'm more interested in the views of the independent commission."
