He’s the Demon king and fittingly Melbourne skipper Max Gawn dragged West Coast into rucking hell, turning the Eagles’ best chance of a victory into another defeat, this time to the tune of 32 points.
And the ramifications of the loss could prove further costly for the Eagles with a concussion to defender Jeremy McGovern sidelining the veteran for their winnable-clash against Richmond next weekend.
When Jamie Cripps kicked the first goal of the third term the Eagles led by 12 points and a win was in sight.
But Gawn loomed large over the match all week and the Eagles’ inability to find a solution to his dominance ultimately cost them as he led a resurgent Melbourne to a 16.12 (108) to 11.10 (76) victory.
Gawn belted Matt Flynn in the ruck and around the ground, recording a career-high 35 disposals, 47 hit-outs, nine clearances and a goal to be the undisputed best on the ground.
His incredible performance meant the Demons were superior at the centre clearances (48-26) which resulted in Melbourne playing the game in their half.
And while their forward line woes meant in the first half, they could not put the Eagles away, they got it right in a one-sided third term that ensured West Coast would remain winless this year.
Former Melbourne captain Jack Viney was tasked with ensuring Harley Reid (14 disposals) didn’t emulate his heroics from last year’s meeting against the Eagles in Perth.
He not only beat Reid, but racked up plenty of ball in his own right, finishing with 18 disposals, seven clearances and 10 tackles as well as a goal.
West Coast’s midfielders simply didn’t work hard enough for long enough to match Melbourne’s intensity.
Tim Kelly celebrated his 150th game with only 14 disposals, while defender Brady Hough (12 touches) looked out of place in his new role in the middle of the ground.
Eagles coach Andrew McQualter tried to mix it up, sending in Liam Baker, Liam Ryan and Tyler Brockman at various stages, but Gawn’s influence meant any move he made mattered little.
Melbourne were electric in the first term, dominating at the clearances 12-2 and slicing West Coast’s team defence open with precision kicking.
Fortunately for the Eagles, Melbourne’s forward woes still weren’t fixed and they managed only two goals by the first break.
For West Coast, it was a quarter of nearly moments, and they were only in the match due to fortunate circumstances.
The trend continued in the second quarter and there were concerns that for just the third time in their history the Eagles would go goalless in a first half.
Jack Williams ensured it wouldn’t happen when he finally broke through for West Coast 18 minutes into the term.
It started a mini resurgence from West Coast which was led by young midfielder Elijah Hewett who lifted at the contest and was rewarded when he kicked a fantastic goal on the run.
Jayden Hunt took advantage of a Steven May errror to snap a goal from the right pocket before Tyler Brockman slotted a sharp set shot and somehow the Eagles led at half-time despite a lop-sided stats sheet.
The only downside was a concussion to McGovern, who did not appear after half-time following an incident in the second term when he was pushed into a contest by Melbourne forward Jake Melksham.
When Cripps found space just after the main break to kick the Eagles’ fifth goal it looked as if the home side was on track for their first win of the season.
As he has for the past fortnight, Gawn took his game to another level and in three goals in six minutes to Melbourne.
The Eagles didn’t rectify their struggles at the stoppages and their luck ran out, which was always going to prove costly if they didn’t find another way to grab the momentum.
West Coast’s intensity dropped off as fatigue set in and Melbourne pounced, kicking seven goals to two for the quarter to lead by 29 points at the final break.
Melbourne’s Daniel Turner kicked the first two goals of the final term to give him three for the night and another blowout was on the cards for the struggling Eagles.
The Eagles managed to fight it out until the end though with Jake Waterman (three goals) and Hewett kicking two goals each for the quarter.
SCOREBOARD
MELBOURNE 2.2, 3.7, 10.12, 16.12 (108)
WEST COAST 0.5, 4.7, 6.7, 11.10 (76)
Goals – MELBOURNE: D Turner 3 B Fritsch 2 E Langdon 2 K Chandler M Gawn J Melksham C Petracca K Pickett H Sharp C Spargo J Viney C Windsor. WEST COAST: E Hewett 3 J Waterman 3 J Cripps 2 T Brockman J Hunt J Williams.
Best – MELBOURNE: M Gawn J Viney H Langford C Petracca K Chandler C Windsor. WEST COAST: R Ginbey R Maric L Baker J Waterman E Hewett J Graham.
Injuries – MELBOURNE: H Petty (concussion). WEST COAST: J McGovern (concussion).
Umpires: N Jankovskis N Williamson E Tee A Adair. Crowd: 44,991 at Optus Stadium.
https://thewest.com.au/sport/west-coast-eagles/melbourne-skipper-max-gawn-tears-west-coast-to-shreds-to-ensure-eagles-still-winless-in-2025-afl-season-c-18571019
