ROOS SAYS DEMONS ‘DEFINITELY’ A FINALS PROSPECT

FORMER Melbourne coach Paul Roos has declared the Demons will “definitely play finals” this year and has slammed suggestions the team is mentally weak.

Melbourne has not featured in finals since 2006 and last year missed out by 0.5 per cent after a shock final-round loss to Collingwood.

However, Roos said the returns of key players and the age profile of the list meant the Demons were primed for a big year in 2018.

“I think talent-wise, agewise now they’re right in the sweet spot so I think they’ll definitely make the eight,” he said.

“I say that depending on injuries. Every team’s reliant on injuries but we’ve already seen in this early period going through the AFLX and preseason they’ve got enormous depth, they’ve got talent and now they’re in the right age bracket so if I’m a Melbourne supporter I’m pretty excited going into this year.”

Crippled by injury last year, Melbourne was without cocaptain Jack Viney for four of the last eight rounds, got only 10 games out of key forward Jesse Hogan and 13 games out of star ruckman Max Gawn.

Nathan Jones also missed six games in the second half of the season with a leg injury.

“If they can get good years out of some of those guys it will go a long way,” Roos said.

“Nathan Jones missed a lot of footy, Jack Viney missed a lot of footy and then you’ve got Gawn and Hogan. They’re probably their four most important players.”

Demons players have been criticised after last year’s final-round loss and subsequently boycotting a commando-style pre-season camp but Roos — who has rejoined long-running Fox Footy show On the Couch this year — said talk among supporters that their side lacked heart was “ridiculous”.

“I don’t know how you can say that because they’ve turned over nearly their whole list in the last three years so most of these players that are playing now weren’t even playing four or five years ago,” he said.

“I can sense where they get frustrated, the Melbourne supporters. But their club’s totally different to what it was four years ago and they’ll definitely play finals this year pending a good run with injuries.”