2018 flop ‘made us stronger’

MELBOURNE star Clayton Oliver says it is a testament to the Demons that they didn’t let the 2018 preliminary final horror show define them as a playing group.

The Demons finally ended their long wait for a premiership on Saturday night against the Western Bulldogs.

It comes after the Demons spent two years out of the finals, after making a prelim in 2018. That trashing at the hands of West Coast had the potential to truly scar the Demons’ players, with Melbourne finishing 17th in 2019, then ninth last year.

Oliver (pictured) said it showed the strength and connection of the group that they were able to bounce back.

“It’s been a long couple of years with ups and downs at our football club, so it is pretty nice to get it done,” he said.

“We had that 2018 year where we thought we were going all right and then we got a reality check in 2019 and 2020 was so close.

“At the start of the year, we sat down and spoke about what we wanted to achieve and our values and we stuck to them throughout the year.”

Demons president Kate Roffey has declared the drought-breaker should give birth to a brand new dynasty.

The age profile of the Demons’ list should fill Melbourne fans with confidence, with only Max Gawn soon to hit 30 out of the club’s stars.

Oliver backed Gawn to keep improving, despite hitting the milestone.

“He’s a different sort of 30, I think,” he said.

“He seems to get every year, he is crazy.

“And he didn’t really start (becoming an elite player) until he was 25 or so.

“He had the ACL (tear), so hopefully he can play until he is 35.”