'That's the way we want to play': Pressure eases on Simon Goodwin as Demons winless start to the season ends

The pressure on Simon Goodwin's job has been eased as Kysaiah Pickett ignited a fierce attacking display to help put an end to the Demons winless start to the season.

Goodwin has been under pressure in recent weeks as his team had yet to find an answer to end their worst start to a season in 13 years.

But a dominant display in the opening quarter lifted the hopes of the Demons coach as his players stormed to a 16.11 (107) to 14.13 (97) win over Fremantle at the MCG.

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Melbourne had kicked 12.2 by half time to equal their highest score of the year as Pickett "set the (MCG) alight" and scored four goals.

The Demons continued to dominate in the third but the pace of their goal scoring quickly began to slow in comparison to their first half display.

A late resurgence from Fremantle in the fourth looked set to derail the Demons' hopes of victory as key forward Jye Amiss nailed two goals to lift the intensity of the game.

But it was Harvey Langford who managed to pull his team away from recording yet another loss as he nailed a goal to push the Demons over the 100-point mark.

"We are trying to develop and learn on the spot," Demons skipper Max Gawn, who had 28 disposals, 31 hit outs and 10 clearances, said post-match on Fox Footy.

"We didn't have (Steven) May or (Jake) Lever, that's a pretty young group, and we are trying to score. The mindset of our defence was awesome today."

The win is a promising sign for Goodwin, given possible candidates to take over his duties have begun to emerge.

Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge was linked to be the leading contender for the job but has since shut down speculation that he will be moving on from his team in 2026.

Still, Goodwin insisted that while external noise around his role continues to grow louder, his players are not being impacted by such matters.

"One thing I'm really strong with the players is to block out noise," he said post-match.

"How you want to go about your job, your work, your commitment to the task - I feel incredibly well supported by the president and the club as to where I sit in the footy club.

"My job is to coach the club, coach the team, and coach our players to be the best they possibly can.

"I don't listen to [external noise]. I'm here with the Melbourne footy job and will do the best job I can.

"We've been in the midst of some change. Sometimes that can be challenging. I understand as a coach that change can be difficult.

"We aren't where we want to be but we are well on the way.

"[Today] that's the way we want to play," Goodwin continued.

"The stuff we were doing without the ball, the tackles, the pressure, the chase... that's what this footy club has been built on."