Demons' Watts no certainty for AFL opener
Mar 21, 2017 - 6:45 AM Melbourne's Jack Watts is no certainty to face St Kilda in their AFL round one clash, with Demons coach Simon Goodwin saying the key forward is "slowly improving".Saints host Melbourne at Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon, with both teams billed as the big improvers of the season.
Watts didn't play in the Demons' first two pre-season games after training poorly but returned for their final hit-out against West Coast.
He played strongly on Sunday in a Casey Demons VFL clash against Port Melbourne although Goodwin refused to guarantee him a round one berth.
He said Watts was in the mix along with Jeff Garlett, Dean Kent and Joel Smith.
"He is slowly improving; he's getting better, which is pleasing," Goodwin said.
"We've got some decisions to make around how our forward line shapes up.
"That's something we'll discuss pretty heavily at match committee, getting the balance right between the tall forward line and a slightly smaller one."
Saints have dominated the Demons of late, winning their past 14 contests dating back to 2006.
Etihad hasn't been a happy hunting ground for Melbourne either, with one win there in their past 25 and none against Saints since 2002.
But Goodwin, who took over from Paul Roos as head coach this season, said the team wasn't bothered by the miserable record.
"It's irrelevant," he said.
"If people think we're thinking about the track record and the history against St Kilda they're wrong.
"This playing group are really focused on creating heir own journey and pathway forward."
Brimming with young talent, the Demons have been talked of as finals chances but Goodwin refuses to buy into the hype.
He says his team are embracing the expectation and while he's happy with the way they're tracking, feels they still have a lot to work on.
"I was really impressed the first few weeks (of pre-season).
"I felt we were playing a certain brand of footy that resembles the way we want to play."
Source: AAP
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