Why keeper Josh Fraser is right to stay the course despite Blues win

Melbourne’s new coach, Steven King, made the case for Fraser to hold on to his post. King, too, was a caretaker, briefly managing the Gold Coast after the sunset of Stuart Dew’s coaching career.

Being a babysitter didn’t hurt his chances of a big gig. It won’t hurt Fraser’s.

Second, the way King has handled Melbourne in his new career makes a case for Carlton’s desire to drive the process to find the next coach.

Melbourne may have abandoned a wide-ranging coaching search and have only focused on available Nathan Buckley. Instead, they did two things at once and ran the process while talking to Buckley. Then they signed the King.

Many expressed concern when Carlton CEO Graham Wright said the club would run the process even if it meant removing coaches with premiership experience. He and Carlton have a right to stick with it.

The first games under the guard often lead to victories and teams are freed to play without a load. In the long run they could be a dead cat, so we can’t wait to see what’s next for the Blues.

Josh Fraser-Blues didn’t just play with freedom they played with discipline. In difficult opening situations they closed the corridors and often moved the ball forward with patience and uncontested marks, leaving them with the ability to protect the area behind them if a team running at them with speed could not reach them.

They had decisive advantages in one contest after another across the country: Harry McKay on Buku Khamis or Jedd Busslinger; Marc Pittonet and McKay vs. Rory Lobb and Louis Emmett.

They were helped by Tom Liberatore still absent and Ed Richards and Marcus Bontempelli playing injured. But this sort of thing has been true of Carlton’s opponents in other games without them getting home.

Jagga Smith was impressive and the Blues dropped two winners to get three to pick him. But Matt Carroll is a real talent, Lachie Cowan is improving fast and first baseman Jack Ison he arrived at the game with the look of a man wondering why he hadn’t arrived earlier.

Paddy Cripps drew plaudits for his gamebut Fraser should also be recognized for adapting the captain’s role. Cripps went further ahead in the third quarter. This has happened many times before, but this is the step, the second evolution of his game that Carlton and Cripps need.

At times Fraser used Ben Ainsworth in the middle with George Hewitt and Jagga Smith. This was also a sign of the changes Carlton knows it needs to take with its midfield. Josh knows that.

Unburdened and unencumbered: Can the Devils stay free as the stakes rise?

Midway through the last quarter Blake Howes ran onto a loose ball forward by Josh Battle. Connor McDonald, head spinning faster than his legs, ran at Howes who seemed to be considering the idea that McDonald was going to catch him as McDonald did.

Howes collected the ball without breaking stride and continued to run. He did a one-two handball to one Pickett, Latrelle, then a long kick to another, Kysaiah, right in front. Kozzy scored the goal but the art in this photo was provided by Howes not Kozzy.

It was probably the furthest goal from a goal that Howes scored in red and blue. The longest time he ran and carried the ball and punched the most has been on foot. He was playing like he was Mordy-Braeside all over again.

Howes is a typically athletic player who has been anxious and playing as if he was second guessing every decision and worrying about every distraction. In the end he was made into a lock defender when he was naturally a very talented player.

That moment included the most fundamental changes in Melbourne football this year under King. Coaching changes and big-name performances and personalities are well-documented, but the biggest changes have taken place under King. It is overwhelmed by their performance. It’s not just the freedom to make mistakes but it’s encouraging to do so because then at least you’re pushing your limits.

This is not meant to be a slight to Simon Goodwin as it is common at clubs with long tenured coaches and when the pressure and expectations mount. Melbourne players have noticed the change.

Melbourne’s new poster boy is Tom Sparrow, who previously couldn’t get into the midfield regularly with Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca but is now heading for A grade. Alongside him is Daniel Turner who is becoming a very good player, making up for the loss of Steven May before the season. Ed Langdon has been an advocate for the race.

The Devils seem to be freer without relying on big names and personalities. They play with orders to attack and license so they can run away.

Three big names remain in Melbourne – Petracca, Oliver and May – but Harry Sharp, Jack Steele and Max Heath came in as perfect complements to the game King wants to play and the gaps that needed filling. Petracca in particular but also Oliver have been a good image for their new clubs. Two things can be true: trades don’t need to be two, both sides can win and that seems to be the case here.

Sharp has been the best picture from Brisbane. He was an emergency in the Premiership side and came into this Melbourne team as a catch up player. He fills in for Alex Neal-Bullen with great running ability and can step up as an extra midfielder but still moves forward with a wild eye for goal.

Heath is an excellent second choice to support Max Gawn. And Steele is just honest. That St Kilda is paying around $200k of his contract is a help, especially given the part of Oliver’s contract they are paying to play for GWS.

Matthew Jefferson is emerging as a promising key. He delivered well on Saturday and was strong in the air. His kicking was a little frustrating but he’s usually more than reliable.

After 10 matches they have accepted the freedom to play with passion and speed and won seven times, including against Brisbane, Hawthorn and the Sun. In one way, the license has been easier to give players when they are all new and expectations are low, as was the case at the beginning of the year for the Devils.

The question for Melbourne and King halfway through the year is this: can they be brave and continue to play with that freedom when expectations rise and the stakes get higher?

Hawks problems

Sam Mitchell thought it was an outside performance. And with wins and losses for the season he is right. But there are fundamental concerns for the Hawks.

In the Port Adelaide game, which we wrote here earlierThe Power used an attacking line which the Hawthorn quarterback was unsettled. Ultimately, they were not talented enough to win. Collingwood borrowed from the technique in the way they brought the ball forward.

And Melbourne went with a similar plan to try to spread Hawthorn’s defense and at least bring the ball down where teams feel they are vulnerable. No team likes to defend balls that come fast and long with runners on the front line. Refusal to mark Hawthorn’s interception is important.

Initially, Melbourne’s game was built on trying to win the ball in the last minute but in the second half they won the ball back and scored. That is more difficult for any team to defend and once the momentum was established Hawthorn could not stop it.

The Devils shot 5.2 from eight inside fifty in the final quarter for one point against. Seven scores including five wickets from just eight innings is having a picnic. That’s against a Hawthorn defense that has been one of the hardest to score against. In fact, it was one without Tom Barrass. The Hawks had Ned Reeves, Lloyd Meek and Max Ramsden all playing, and it didn’t work. None of them are natural attackers.

Hawthorn is usually a competitive team to win the ball and the Devils beat them on that occasion. They also tied them with another force in clearances after leading the statistics with goals 7-1 earlier in the game. These are the figures that Mitchell would hope are outliers.

Golden day

Do you care that Scott Pendlebury is wearing a gold number? Weird and a little ‘look at me, look at me’ that’s out of the way he’s played his whole life, but do you really care? No, not even me. Do you care that he will make a motza out of it? No, I don’t really. Tim Watson was right, it is an exceptional achievement. Let him celebrate and get his payday. Lord knows he must have been underpaid these last 21 years.

Whether they had to make up the games they missed to produce the AFL’s record number of games against West Coast at the MCG is a different question. He had to miss games. That is without a doubt. At 38, he would be broke if he played on short breaks. Would he miss the Anzac Day game and play at Hawthorn or Sydney is a more relevant question.

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