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Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin insists he has no issue with Brodie Grundy having an interview at Port Adelaide, coming as he declared the Demons are ready to embrace the “big stage” of a sold-out qualifying final against Collingwood on Thursday night.
While Grundy continues to train at a high tempo with the Demons, he remains the back-up ruckman, and is likely to only play in September should Max Gawn be injured.
Brodie Grundy on the track with his Melbourne colleagues on Wednesday, including coach Simon Goodwin (inset).Credit: Getty
Magpies coach Craig McRae has indicated he would field his two specialist ruckmen, Darcy Cameron and Mason Cox, despite the predicted wet and cold conditions.
Grundy, the two-time All-Australian with four years remaining on his contract, has turned his attention, in part, to 2024 and beyond.
Having been let go by the Magpies to ease salary-cap pressure during last year’s trade period, Grundy last week met with the Power about a potential trade. While Demons supporters have questioned whether players should be meeting with rival clubs during the finals, Goodwin said on Wednesday he trusted Grundy’s professionalism.
“No issue from my end. We’re a mature industry now. There are probably 50 players around the league that would be meeting with different clubs at this time of year. It’s pretty commonplace in the industry these days,” Goodwin said.
“He has really loved the Melbourne Football Club.”
Adding to the off-field intrigue is that the Demons and Power could yet meet in the finals.
Goodwin said he had not had a direct conversation with Grundy about a potential trade, but understood the 29-year-old craved regular senior selection. He has spent the bulk of the past two months in the VFL. Should Grundy leave for his third club in three years, he could be in the unique situation of having three clubs contribute to his lucrative contract.
“Brodie’s a professional footballer. He knows he’s got a four-year contract, and he knows he’s going to keep pushing this year to play finals footy,” Goodwin said.
Jumping for joy: Tom McDonald is back in the senior fold after a disrupted year because of an ankle injury.Credit: Getty Images
“We’re across what’s going on around there. Our list manager and the managers are involved, and we understand what’s going on. I don’t need to have that conversation with Brodie, I know what he does from a day-to-day perspective.”
Goodwin’s immediate focus is on the qualifying final against Collingwood, which will be played before more than 90,000 fans at the MCG. A heartbreaking ACL injury to forward Jake Melksham against Sydney in round 24 has given premiership forward Tom McDonald the opportunity to return. McDonald, 30, has managed only six games this season, having had an ankle issue.
“He’s got his timing right, Tommy, hasn’t he? He’s played the last three games really well in the VFL. Now he’s kicking goals, he’s moving better, he’s got his body 100 per cent fit and healthy,” Goodwin said.
“He’s a really important player for us. He’s a leader, and he’s proven that he can play well in finals footy.”
McDonald booted 33 goals during Melbourne’s 2021 premiership campaign, combining well with dynamic left-footer Bayley Fritsch. The latter hurt his foot while booting five goals against the Swans in round 24 – his first match in two months because of a foot problem – but Goodwin said he had trained strongly and would play Thursday night.
“He’s trained fully the last week, so he’s ready to go,” Goodwin said.
“He did a fairly big running session on Saturday … there’s no questions about Bayley; he’s a class player.”
The Demons edged the Magpies by four points in their lone meeting this season, on the King’s Birthday weekend, and head into September with seven wins from their past eight games.
However, the pressure of finals is a level above, and the 2021 premiers were eliminated in straight sets last year.
Goodwin said the fourth-placed Demons defended strongly (they concede the second-least points of any side) and won contests (they rank second for contested possessions), declaring “that’s what finals footy is about”.
“It’s a big stage to play on, MCG, [with a crowd of] 90,000 to 100,000 people. We think we are well-prepared, we think we are ready,” Goodwin said.
“We have had a great couple of weeks at training. We can’t wait to get out there and execute what we have been doing for the last eight weeks,” Goodwin said.
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