Melbourne Demons Season 2025 Preview
Reflecting on the Demons last season, and setting this year's expectations
2025 Ladder Position: 9th (6 wins, 5 losses, 87.9%)
2024 Best & Fairest: Kate Hore
Senior Coach: Mick Stinear
The Melbourne Football Club faced football mortality in 2024, missing out on finals for the first time since 2019, and finishing outside the top 4 of a non-conference ladder for the first time in the club’s history. Injuries took their toll, with several stars missing large chunks of the season and the list’s lack of young talent due to several high finishes was evident, relying on several top up players and youngsters who probably weren’t quite ready to step up. It wasn’t all doom and gloom though, with a positive win-loss record meaning they were just one win away from the finals, and a stirring victory against a powerhouse Crows side, in which the Dees kept them goalless until the half to grind out the low scoring contest, suggests the Demons are still not a team to take lightly.
The Game Plan
“That’s what you’ve got to grapple with – I know for our team personally, if we went overly defensive, you’d probably snuff out some of their spirit and their creativity.” – Mick Stinear, October 2024
Mick Stinear has coached Melbourne since its inaugural season and has primarily built his gameplan around having a very stingy defence. In their premiership season 7 in 2022, Melbourne conceded just 18.4 points per game from just 7.0 scoring shots on average, forcing teams to turn the ball over through disciplined defensive structure and elite intercepting capabilities. However, several key pieces of their backline have since departed the club, in particular experienced interceptors Libby Birch (North Melbourne) and Maddison Gay (Essendon), leaving a noticeable hole in how the current iteration of the Demons can hold up opposition play and win the ball back. Maeve Chaplin’s breakout year was therefore integral for Stinear as he has managed to find a new intercepting defender to replace those experienced heads, with Chaplin’s 6.7 intercept possessions second only to hard-running winger Eliza McNamara, whose ability to run defensively to affect defensive contests and provide relief for the Demons’ defence was crucial. As such, the Demons continued to be the highest intercepting team in the competition (62.4 per game), but it was the volume of entries into defensive fifty that would have concerned Mick Stinear the most: the Demons’ opposition averaged 35.1 inside fifties per game, ranking them 13th in the 2024 competition, and significantly more than the 28.9 they averaged in 2023.
Melbourne’s game style allowed the opposition a lot of the ball, averaging 248.5 disposals against per game for a differential of -13.3, and it was their inability to stop teams from getting the ball on the outside that cost them in 2024. In their premiership campaign the Dees averaged just 80.7 uncontested possessions per game, the lowest in the competition. This number has completely flipped around in the space of two years, with the Dees conceding 133.7 uncontested possessions per game in 2024, the most in the league. In both of those seasons the Dees were able to generate the most turnovers of any team (62.3 per game in 2024), but unfortunately for the Dees their harassing pressure was often matched by the opposition, leading to them themselves having 62.0 turnovers per game. The loss of this competitive edge in the turnover game, and thus scores from turnover, was a big part of why Melbourne’s 2024 season fell below expectations.
Following on from this, Melbourne’s forward half damage was greatly limited in 2024, and not helped by injuries to twin spearheads Eden Zanker and Tayla Harris. Inspirational skipper Kate Hore also spent more time around the midfield to cover the loss of inside midfielder Olivia Purcell to injury, and as such the Demons were often relying on inexperienced forwards such as Georgia Gall and allowed teams to better cover Alyssa Bannan, who was afforded less space to use her pace out the back of contests to run onto loose balls and score transition goals. These factors combined to drop the Dees from averaging 8.5 goals in 2023 to just 4.8 in 2024, something the club will be hoping to rectify in the upcoming 2025 season by improving their creativity and ball movement alongside their usually sound defensive structures.
🔊🔊🔊 Check out our Melbourne Demons 2025 Preview Episode wherever you get your podcasts to listen to our interview with Maeve Chaplin! 🔊🔊🔊
Squad Summary
Preseason movements
IN:
Molly O’Hehir (2024 National Draft, pick #3)
Maggie Mahony (2024 National Draft, pick #21)
Amelia Dethbridge (2024 National Draft, pick #63)
Laela Ebert (injury replacement)
OUT:
Grace Hill (delisted)
Delany Madigan (delisted)
Sarah D’Arcy (delisted)
Sophie Casey (delisted)
Rhiannon Watt (retired)
Lily Mithen (trade – Gold Coast)
2025 Statistics
Average age (as of 31 Dec 2024): 24.3 (7th oldest)
Average number of games played: 33.2 (8th most experienced)
After the premiership success in 2022, Melbourne are understandably transitioning their list towards a more youthful team, though they still retain plenty of experience on field. Their backline retains a lot of their senior players, with Paxy Paxman (35), Sinead Goldrick (35), and Gabrielle Colvin (32) the mainstays over 30 in the best 23 other than skipper Kate Hore (30). The years are starting to catch up with veteran ruck Lauren Pearce (32), who succumbed to injury in 2024 and may find her spot lost to up and coming youngster Georgia Campbell (21) who played 10 games in her absence. While youth will clearly be a focus over the next few seasons for the Dees as they transition their list, several of their star players have plenty of match experience while still being in the peak of their careers; former Rising Star Tyla Hanks (25) and 2023 league leading goal kicker Eden Zanker (25) have both played over 70 games, with Shelley Heath (24) not far behind on 64 games. As such, the Dees will be relying on these ‘younger’ veterans while their young talent develops including recent high draft picks Alyssa Pisano (19) and Ryleigh Wotherspoon (21).
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2025 Preview
The Best Case Scenario
Melbourne have always prided themselves on their ability to make it to the pointy end of the season and will be hoping that a cleaner bill of health – and a likely softer fixture – will be just what they need to push back into the finals. Injuries to several key players hurt last year, and their ability to not only force turnover but retain the footy as well, suffered for it. The return of Tayla Harris will immediately straighten out their forward line, while the grunt work of Olivia Purcell was sorely missed in the midfield. Add those two back into the mix, alongside continued development from their younger players, and the Dees should be able to add a couple more wins to what they did in 2024 – and a 6-5 record was already pretty good to begin with, even if it didn’t quite cut it for finals.
On the Other Hand…
Has there been too great a gap between having a list of premiership heroes and now having to start renewing the team? The drop off across just two seasons has been stark for Melbourne, and their inability to continue to hurt teams on turnover – while giving up plenty of their own – will be the first thing Mick Stinear will want to address. The reliance on club legend Paxy Paxman, now 35, as a cool head down back and an accurate kick, is also something to address, along with how much influence Sinead Goldrick had both through the middle and down back. The Dees can’t keep relying on players well into their 30s, however talented they are, and if the next generation can’t step up to replace them soon, the scoring might continue to dry up.
Player Preview: The Star
Kate Hore had massive shoes to fill replacing all-time great Daisy Pearce as Melbourne captain, but could not have done more to prove herself as the Dees most important player. The 2023 All-Australian skipper is arguably the most impactful forward half player in the competition, elusive around the ball and deadly in front of goal. Her match-winning round 1 performance against Geelong showed off all of her talents, racking up 3 goals, 23 disposals and 7 clearances in a dominant display. Whether it’s up forward or through the middle, very few players can influence a game like Kate Hore and her ability to turn games will again be crucial for the Dees’ chances in 2025.
Player Preview: The Breakout
Lauren Pearce’s injuries opened the door for father-daughter prospect Georgia Campbell to take over as first ruck, and she took to the role with aplomb. It has taken her a few years to develop, especially given the consistency with which Pearce has played across her career, but now she is established it’s very likely the Demons will look to give her greater opportunity even when Pearce returns. Imposing around the ground and with a strong set of hands, Campbell looms as a very strong long term replacement for one of the competition’s best rucks across the journey.
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2025 Best 21
Front of Mind
“Did 2024 mark the end of an era?”
Failing to make finals despite a 6-5 record seems unlucky on the surface, but their lacklustre percentage of 87.5 suggests that this Melbourne team is no longer the powerhouse they once were. Their ability to score was drastically reduced after previously being one of the heaviest scoring teams for much of the previous 3 years, and although their defence was still solid, they still conceded much more than they would have liked, especially against finals quality teams such as Fremantle and the irrepressible North Melbourne. Injuries certainly played their part in the decline, so Mick Stinear will be hoping his 10th season in charge can be more of a recalibration than the beginning of a rebuild.
Setting the Bar
Returning to finals. Melbourne’s culture of success is enough to make finals football a must for 2025, and even if the premiership may be a stretch too far, this team still possesses enough talent and ability to at least make the top 8. Winning a final would be a bonus but showing that they aren’t a spent force will be enough of a win overall as the team moves towards a new generation of players.
At the End of the Day
The Demons finished 2024 with their worst ever ladder position, missing finals despite winning 6 games. The introduction of new players, many forced due to injuries to key players, meant their high pressure turnover game struggled to be as effective as it had been in previous seasons, but with those players returning and experience gained among their youngsters, long term coach Mick Stinear will be keen to make sure only small fixes are required to push the Dees back into the top 8.
Keen for more?
Follow Free Kick wherever you get your podcasts, and have a listen to our Melbourne Demons Preview Episode for our chat with Maeve Chaplin!
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Artwork commissioned and supplied by the Free Kick gang in a “10 seconds to look at the logo 90 seconds to paint it” challenge from mid-2025