Round 10 - Melbourne v St Kilda
MCG
Pre Match:
• Recovery from trip to Perth was a high priority. Players stayed an extra day in the west to do recovery routine – something we hadn’t tried before. Hopefully they would feel fresher later in the week than they normally do and thus have a better chance to run out the game versus St Kilda.
• Important that we didn’t get caught up in the gallant loss mentality versus West Coast and quickly focus on St Kilda. Victory in this game would keep the winner in touch with the top 4 so much was at stake.
• Replaced the suspended Miller with Ben Holland and included Matt Bate in the team with the hope that his fresh legs would be of benefit against the Saints.
• Our goal was to play the desperate, hard at it & committed team football that has served us well over the past seven weeks. St Kilda pride themselves on a similar approach and in season 2005 smashed us in this department. The opportunity to regain some respect from the Saints was high on our priority list.
• Planned around limiting the influence of Dal Santo, Ball & Harvey and restricting the scoring power of Gehrig & Riewoldt. Easier said than done but our players were ready for the challenge.
• Obviously the fact that Neita was about to break Robbie Flowers games record was a significant motivation for the team. Whilst the build up was kept to a minimum at Neita’s request there was no doubt that our players would work hard to get a positive result for our popular skipper.
During the Match:
• Dream opening for the skipper nailing 3 of our 4 first term goals. Was impressed with our work rate with and without the ball. We had St Kilda under pressure and we played confident football. We won the disputed ball and had it not been for a couple of skill errors which contributed to St Kilda goals our lead would have been greater.
• A tremendous second quarter followed. We maintained our fantastic work rate, forced St Kilda into error and hit the scoreboard. Neita banged on another 3 and was causing a huge headache for his opponents. Hudgton has been in super form this season so for Neita to take him apart in such an emphatic manner was an outstanding effort. A six goal lead at half time was a just reward although could have been greater had we taken all our chances. Great to see Matty Whelan score a goal from half back late in the quarter.
• Opened the 3rd quarter with another goal to the skipper and all was looking good. Unfortunately at this point our work rate dropped, we stopped winning the disputed ball and St Kilda attacked repeatedly and by ¾ time had reduced our lead to 14 points. Only a late goal to Lynden Dunn stopped the Saints from being closer. We had too many players not contributing and lost our ability to take the game on. Whilst we were looking to slow the game down a bit we probably over used the tactic and this allowed the Saints back in the game.
• We steadied well with Neita scoring his 8th for the game early in the 4th. The remainder of the quarter was an arm wrestle and we were pleased with the fact that our team was able to lift its work rate. Travis Johnstone who had been quiet all game really lifted and he along with Brock & James McDonald really started to generate a lot of drive from the stoppages. Bate’s goal was the culmination of a brilliant passage of play and Lynden Dunn played it smart to create a set shot for Byron. Good to see our young players getting into the action when the game was in the balance.
Post Game:
• The first half was outstanding. We played a great brand of football and really had St Kilda on the back foot.
• Disappointed with our second half, particularly the 3rd quarter where we lost our energy and failed to take the game on when the chances presented themselves. We cannot play that way next week against Collingwood. If we do they will kill us. Four quarters of sustained intensity will be required if we are to achieve a victory.
• David Neitz probably played the greatest milestone game in AFL history and it couldn’t happen to a better bloke. He got us away to a great start and made sure we got over the line. He is a tremendous leader with selflessness, modesty, courage and competitiveness high on his list of qualities. His determination to put the team result ahead of his personal milestone is a reflection of his character and the reason our boys were so determined to win for him. Well done on a great career Neita!
• Thanks to Rob Flower for the gracious and humble way in which he handed over the Melbourne FC games record to David. I know Neita feels hugely privileged to have attained such a record because he and all the players respect Rob’s contribution to the club enormously. His bravery and skill will always be a major part of MFC legend and his continued support of our club is much appreciated.
