Sydney leave the MCG after their 31 point win over Melbourne. Photo: Getty - Sydney Morning Herald

SYDNEY 5.3 9.13 13.18 16.20 (116) MELBOURNE 3.1 5.2 8.5 13.7 (85)

GOALS Sydney: B Jack 4, Bird 2, Tippett 2, Everitt, Lamb, McVeigh, K Jack, Parker, Pyke, O'Keefe, Mitchell. Melbourne: Fitzpatrick 3, Dawes 2, Howe 2, Watts 2, Davey, Nicholson, Trengove, Jones. BEST Sydney: K Jack, McVeigh, O'Keefe, Malceski, Tippett, Kennedy, B Jack, Bird. Melbourne: Fitzpatrick, Terlich, Rodan, Garland, Watts, Howe.

INJURIES Sydney: Reid (quad). Melbourne: Frawley (hamstring).

UMPIRES Mollison, Hay, Harris.

CROWD 26,216 at MCG.

It was, defender Colin Garland admitted, the type of match in which Melbourne would have been blown away for much of this season.

The lowly Demons produced a commendable first-quarter effort to trail Sydney by just two goals. They did likewise in the Queen's Birthday match, only to be pummelled 16 goals to six by Collingwood thereafter.

Melbourne midfielder Colin Sylvia takes on Sydney ruckman Shane Mumford. Photo: Wayne Taylor

Given Sydney's dominance of the second quarter for inside-50s (21 to 4), contested possessions (45 to 24), clearances (12 to 5) and scoring shots (14 to 3), it should have gone to the main break with a win assured and on the cusp of a percentage-boosting thrashing.

While the Swans' profligacy in front of goal - four goals from 14 shots - gave the Demons a huge reprieve, it was not just a matter of what the Swans did not do.

The continued solid efforts of many Demons, particularly unsung players such as Jack Fitzpatrick and Dean Terlich, meant they were able to walk off the MCG with a comparatively good result - a 31-point loss.

''I think we made some strides in the keep-coming aspect,'' said Garland, who rated the performance as comparable to the win over the Western Bulldogs the previous weekend.

''I think Sydney will tell you they've had to play four quarters against us. Maybe earlier in the year we were two-and-a-half quarters and then we were gone.''

Midfield depth - the absence of it - is regularly cited as Melbourne's biggest weakness. Such a trait is always a problem, but especially so against a well-drilled opponent boasting the likes of Kieren Jack, Jarrad McVeigh, Ryan O'Keefe, Josh Kennedy and Dan Hannebery - and they are just the top-liners.

It said a lot about the midfield riches of the Swans that while Kennedy seemed conspicuously quiet, he actually finished with a game-high 33 possessions and 11 clearances, albeit in a performance that was easier to ignore because all but four of his disposals were by hand.

The issue of how Melbourne's midfield curbed Sydney's was always going to be a key focus. It became especially important after the other big issue - how the Swans would shoehorn Kurt Tippett and Sam Reid into the same forward line - disappeared after just 13 minutes when Reid suffered a game-ending quad injury.

Jack and McVeigh rarely disappoint. They played even above those lofty expectations during that first half, snaring 39 possessions and 12 forward entries between them. By contrast the Demons' most prolific ball-winners were key defenders, James Frawley and Tom McDonald. The composure of the Melbourne defenders was invaluable.

In-form forward Jack Watts was dragged back at one point to help stymie the Swans.

The resilience that caretaker Melbourne coach Neil Craig commended his players for after the match was particularly evident in the defenders, but not exclusively.

The Demons began the last quarter with a 44-point deficit, and while they never seriously threatened a boilover - three Sydney goals in 2½ minutes midway through the term guaranteed the win - their ability to kick five of the eight goals for the quarter should not be discounted.

Inexperienced ruck duo Max Gawn and Fitzpatrick were not disgraced against premiership ruck duo Shane Mumford and Mike Pyke, with Fitzpatrick having genuine claims to be his team's best player with 17 possessions, eight marks and three goals.

TALL TIMBER UNTESTED

Sydney's first taste of having both Kurt Tippett and Sam Reid as key forward targets was fleeting. Reid started on the bench and had to be substituted out of the match after just 13 minutes after an apparent recurrence of a calf injury he suffered in late May. Tippett provided more evidence of why the Swans chased him so hard when he left Adelaide.

DAWES' EFFORT UNREWARDED

Injury prevented former Collingwood forward Chris Dawes playing in the first six matches for his new club. He finished strongly against the Swans, fuelling expectations the Demons will boast a threatening forward line once Mitch Clark returns.

GOOD GENES FOR JACKS

While co-captain Kieren Jack produced another fine performance on Sunday, he had to share some of the spotlight with his younger brother Brandon. After being brought on early as the substitute due to Reid's injury, he made the most of his chance with a four-goal haul. Easily the best sign of his football nous was a brilliant roved goal to a long kick into the Swans forward line in the third quarter. He was unable to match older brother Kieren for possessions - 10 compared with 30 - but was, nevertheless, worthy of praise.

Poll: Who was the player of round 15 in the AFL premiership season 2013?

Dane Swan (Collingwood)

45%

Dylan Shiel (GWS)

5%

Levi Greenwood (North Melbourne)

5%

Matthew Leuenberger (Brisbane Lions)

0%

Joel Selwood (Geelong)

5%

Rory Sloane (Adelaide)

0%

Kieren Jack (Sydney)

10%

Hayden Ballantyne (Fremantle)

15%

David Zaharakis (Essendon)

15%

Total votes: 20.

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