If the main course is anything like the appetiser young Melbourne forward Jesse Hogan delivered at the MCG on Friday night, Demons fans could be in for a lot of fun over the next decade.
The 20-year-old was an exciting presence up forward in the Dees' 32-point upset win against Richmond, taking six marks and kicking two goals on All-Australian full back Alex Rance.
While Hogan beat Rance in one-on-one contests several times, the highlight of the evening was a huge pack mark in the forward pocket in the final quarter. The youngster duly went back and slotted the goal, showing coolness beyond his years.
Champion Essendon full forward Matthew Lloyd said Melbourne fans hadn't had anyone like Hogan to cheer about for a long time: "He's probably going to be the new poster boy for them for the next 10 years," he told 3AW.
Melbourne coach Paul Roos tried to hose down some of the hype but heaped praise on Hogan's willingness to keep competing for the football time and time again.
"He's kicked two goals, it's not like he's kicked 10, but his effort is really good and I think people love coming to the football and seeing effort," he said.
"As long as he gives effort people can put his poster up if they want; if they don't want to they don't have to."
Roos said he was impressed by the way Hogan had played on opponents such as Rance so early in his career, and he put his strong performances so far down to work rate.
"The thing I love about him is he just keeps working. He doesn't get fazed and if he drops a mark he goes after the next one; if the ball hits the deck he generally follows up," Roos said.
"It's a really good trait when you're a competitor. He's a big tank, he can run really well. So I just like the fact he gives effort every week, I can't complain with his form when he's doing that."
While Hogan stole the spotlight, Melbourne's other youngsters Aaron Vandenberg, Christian Salem and Angus Brayshaw showed signs they could play a part in a Demons resurgence. Vandenberg, in particular, had a big game, with 21 disposals and 13 tackles.
"I think the best thing about the young kids is thier tackling, the hardness, their ability to go back to the football and impact the contest," Roos said.
"They're unusual traits in a sense of young kids coming into AFL football so we're really fortunate that three or four of the young guys have got natural defensive traits."
When asked if the Demons had won some respect by beating one of last year's finalists on the big Friday night stage, Roos said: "I think it's getting there, it's something we've really tried to build. Probably slowly got it last year, got a bit of respect and finished the year off poorly," he said.
"Apart from a bad second half against the Giants, we've had some consistent football and that was a theme going into the season not to have those big drop-offs like last year."
