Round 21 AFL tips: Legend says a shock Demons loss to Eagles 'could spell the end' of Simon Goodwin's career
Updated . First published at
AFL legend Matthew Lloyd believes the fate of Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin will be sealed if the Demons lose to West Coast on Saturday.
It comes just days after Goodwin's team blew a 46-point lead to go down to St Kilda by a Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera kick after the siren, leaving the footy world stunned.
Melbourne sits 13th on the AFL ladder while the lowly Eagles are wallowing in last place with one solitary win for the season.
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Goodwin led the club to the 2021 AFL premiership, but it has been a rough few years since then.
Ongoing rumblings of internal discontent have been coupled with meagre results on the field.
Simon Goodwin. Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
Speaking to Nine's Today on Thursday, Lloyd was asked whether a win against the Eagles this week would help kill the noise around Goodwin's future.
"I don't think so, no," Lloyd said.
"Moreso if they lost that game, that could spell the end for Simon Goodwin, you would think, if they were to lose to West Coast, who have won one game for the season.
"They have been off for a couple of years now, [and] there is something not quite right.
"Christian Petracca tried to leave last year, Clayton Oliver tried to leave, Max Gawn has been frustrated, their game plan looks tired, like it's something from three or four years ago when they won a premiership.
"Things do need to change, it's just whether it's the coach that cops it at the end of the year."
Goodwin is contracted to coach again in 2026 and will reportedly receive a $1m payout if the Demons sack him prematurely.
Scroll below to see who Nine's expert tipsters are backing to win in round 21:
Nine's AFL tips leaderboard after round 20. Nine
Tony Jones: Giants, Crows, Demons, Suns, Swans, Magpies, Kangaroos, Cats, Dockers
Clint Stanaway: Bulldogs, Crows, Demons, Suns, Swans, Magpies, Saints, Cats, Dockers
Nat Yoannidis: Bulldogs, Crows, Demons, Suns, Swans, Magpies, Saints, Cats, Dockers
Jimmy Bartel: Bulldogs, Crows, Demons, Suns, Swans, Magpies, Saints, Cats, Dockers
Eddie McGuire: Bulldogs, Crows, Demons, Suns, Swans, Magpies, Saints, Cats, Dockers
Rory Sloane: Bulldogs, Crows, Demons, Suns, Swans, Lions, Saints, Cats, Dockers
Tom Morris: Bulldogs, Crows, Demons, Suns, Swans, Magpies, Saints, Cats, Dockers
