I have little sympathy for those who were baying at quarter time yesterday that the coaching panel and players should be lined up before a firing squad.  After all, it was only Melbourne we were playing - and true enough, we came good in the end.

But for the first quarter yesterday it did seem like I had never left the MCG after the disaster against the Demons in Round 7, because they certainly began as they had finished that game.  Well, kind of.  Because Freo were so woeful, it obscured the fact that Melbourne were having trouble hitting a barn door at three paces themselves.  As usual.  Although I was hardly happy at the unexpected turn of events, I knew that if we could sort things out we would catch them as they ran out of puff.

And so it proved to be.  Once the defence and midfield realised that they had to actually tackle their opponents, and stopped trying to kick it to Pav 100% of the time, we gradually gained acceleration.  Even if Supermac and Tarrant didn't have their kicking boots on all day, they were well supplied and well supported.  The Dealer certainly adds some buzz to the forward half and works tirelessly, even if Browne himself hasn't quite yet got the knack of getting himself into the game.  He and Ryley Dunn could certainly go some way towards solving our half forward problems.

Schammer showed that he probably will succeed Josh Carr as our little inside man in the engine room, and as I predicted he's much more suited to that role than an outside runner.  That's what Brett Peake and - dare I say it - Scott Thornton are for, as we saw.  Grover and Dodd had a light day down back after the opening barrage, but both are stars.  So could Josh Head be, in that mature age rookie with nothing to lose way of his...he has some of Haddrill's ability to clear the defensive area by roosting it safely, which is nice.

It is a great shame Brock O'Brien injured himself.  I had him pegged as a nuggety defender, but he actually demonstrated a fair amount of midfield pep and kicked that superb running goal, so he's more versatile than I thought.  While I wouldn't want to see him rushed back if he's not right - he's a long term project similar to Ibbotson and we must be careful - I hope he's able to appear a couple more times this year.

And that leaves Shaun McManus.  I will readily admit to being one of those who believed his time was up, and perhaps it still is - but I think his game yesterday means his retirement will occur when he wants it to, not on the Hackdorn's whim.  Docker spirit is a rare substance, but Shaun definitely has it and used a fair bit of it to get us back in the contest.  Really, a grand farewell is what he deserves and at the rate he's going, he will get it.

So, to Adelaide again.  It's fitting that Byron Schammer will play his 100th in South Australia, and if Port's usual supporter base show up I should be surrounded by empty seats next Sunday.  There is absolutely no reason we cannot chalk up our now traditional annual win at AAMI Stadium as the teal brigade are coming off a Showdown...I look forward to one of my road trips finally paying off.

Freo forever!