From The Stands: Round 1, Melbourne vs. Sydney | Thebigtip

The draw was not quite the right result for Melbourne who came painfully close to winning in Round 1.

You will probably come to a conclusion that, being a Melbourne supporter, I believe Melbourne should have won. Wrong.

Sydney were the better team. They were miles better, especially in the midfield. They looked more organised, they had first use of the ball and they dominated all over the ground, yet we ended up with two points gained. Sydney will feel they lost two points.

Just where did Sydney not end up with the win? Well, I suppose the Melbourne defence lifted in the second half. The pressure placed on the Sydney forwards was much better than what I saw in the first half. Easy goal scoring opportunities were harder to come by, and 3.9 was the result for the Swans in the third quarter. Although 12 scoring shots against us was really disappointing, we were still in with a shout in the final quarter.

Then it was our turn to be wasteful, arguably worse than the Swans were in that third quarter. With easy chances missed, Melbourne will feel slightly miffed that they did not take out the victory. 3.6 in that final quarter could so easily have been 5.4. Having said that, it did not appear to be our day.

The use of the substitute by Dean Bailey proved to be a disappointing masterstroke (if such a concept exists). Despite Ricky Petterd's introduction changing the game somewhat, he could've been used, say, halfway through the third quarter and perhaps could've been risked especially when 25 points down. The sub nearly didn't come off - with Brad Green sending a scare through the camp with a dislocated finger - but nonetheless it made quite the difference to the game.

Sydney's use of the sub was poor. The first rule of using a sub (can you believe a first rule has been developed in one week? I hate this rule) is not to use a second ruckman. Sydney had no run left.

So, on to the players - Luke Tapscott was brilliant on debut. 113 Supercoach points for me and 200 future games for him, thank you very much. His kicking is marvelous, almost Paul Chapman-esque, and he is built like a tank. If you don't have him in your fantasy teams, you must find a place for him.

Colin Garland lifted after half time. In the first half, Adam Goodes seemed to have a metre and a half to two metres on Garland at every marking contest - unacceptable. However, he learned from this and was wonderful in the second half, keeping Goodes at bay. If Frawley cannot play next week (unlikely), he is capable of taking on Buddy Franklin.

Our goalkicking from the forwards was poor and they will need a fair amount of work next week, especially from Lynden Dunn, who kicked four behinds to add to his two goals. Mark Jamar missed a sitter late in the game and those kinds of shots must be taken advantage of.

Our midfield was poor. The clearances did not go our way at all and it's been an area we've needed to improve on for many years now. With Hodge, Mitchell and co. next week, they will need to lift considerably next week.

To finish, our defence was great. Under immense pressure, they held strong, and were magnificent in the second half, particularly Garland and Grimes.

So in review, it's two points that Melbourne will feel they have gained after playing poorly for three quarters. Next week Melbourne take on Hawthorn - we will NOT win. You have heard it here from a Melbourne supporter first. Melbourne never ever play well against Hawthorn (since 2008 at the least) and if we are close, it's a result of taking all our opportunities.

Join me next week for a revamped 'From The Stands' - soon to be 'From The Cheer Squad'.