Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin will keep his ruck options open for a crucial battle with Fremantle after his back-up brigade stood tall in the absence of injured captain Max Gawn.
Jacob van Rooyen and Harry Petty took the fight to Essendon's Sam Draper, both playing important roles in the Demons' 13.6 (84) to 10.7 (67) win at the MCG on Saturday night.
Van Rooyen was particularly influential after starting in his customary position in attack and moving into the ruck after quarter-time.
"We wanted to get him in the forward line as much as we could but the night just demanded that we needed him up around the ball a little bit more than what we had planned," Goodwin said.
"He did a fantastic job in that second quarter to help us get the game on an even keel and let our mids get to work.
"By the end of the game both Petty and van Rooyen were doing a great job for us."
Despite his glowing assessment, Goodwin wouldn't guarantee he will use the same pair against Fremantle at Optus Stadium next round.
The Dockers' line-up will feature a familiar face in former Demon Luke Jackson, with his regular ruck partner Sean Darcy set to return from concussion.
Both were influential when Fremantle gave Melbourne a shock 92-point thrashing in round 12.
Gawn remains an outside chance to return from a chipped fibula against the Dockers, after missing just one match.
If not, Goodwin could also turn to off-season recruit Tom Fullarton, who is yet to play a game for Melbourne, or hand 20-year-old Will Verrall his senior debut.
"As long as Max is out of the team we'll continue to keep every option available to us every week," Goodwin said.
"Tom Fullarton's there, Will Verrall's there and obviously we've got the boys we had tonight.
"We'll look at all those guys again this week."
Gawn was originally expected to miss two or three matches after sustaining the damage to his right leg during the Demons' win over West Coast on July 7.
"He's progressing well," Goodwin said.
"We're not going to put a time limit on it because we're not sure, but he did have a good couple of days in the last few days.
"We'll assess him midweek and see where he's at, but we'll make that call later in the week."
Melbourne (10-7) gave their finals hopes a huge boost with the win over Essendon and can take another step towards September if they topple Fremantle (10-6-1).
