Melbourne's drought-breaking AFL premiership in 2021 has inspired the Demons' AFLW side to follow suit, and the addition of star forward Tayla Harris could prove to be the final piece of the puzzle.
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In a poll of all 14 AFLW captains, Melbourne (seven votes) were rated as the side most likely to reach this year's grand final, with defending champions Brisbane (five) coming in as second.
Collingwood and Adelaide received one vote each, while North Melbourne and Fremantle are widely tipped by pundits to also be in the running.
The Demons broke their 57-year AFL premiership drought in 2021 by beating the Western Bulldogs in the grand final in Perth.
Melbourne's AFLW side are yet to win a flag, despite boasting strong squads that have been around the mark since the inception of the competition in 2017.
The Demons lost last year's preliminary final to Adelaide by 18 points, and they are desperate to go all the way this season.
Captain Daisy Pearce said watching the men's side win the AFL flag last year had served as inspiration.
"We were so proud of the boys. Their success and the way they went about their season, we got a lot of inspiration from that," Pearce said.
"And we can find similarities in their journey up until that point. We've had similar challenges.
"And then when you see your own brothers in a sense go out and make real progress in some areas and then achieve the ultimate success, it does make us believe that we're capable of doing that.
"Having it right there in your own club, it does create a sense of belief, but it also makes us very aware of the amount of work that went into it."
The arrival of former Carlton star Harris is set to play a big role in Melbourne's premiership push.
Harris struggled at the Blues last year, booting just four goals from eight games.
But the two-time All-Australian is determined to return to her best this year, and her presence up forward has the potential to turn Melbourne into the most formidable side in the AFLW.
"I'm super pumped. Tay has been awesome for our group," Pearce said.
"We've been lacking that big, contested presence up forward over the last couple of years, and she's definitely that."
Pearce has fully recovered from the knee surgery she underwent last year and will be fit and firing come Saturday's season opener against the Western Bulldogs at Whitten Oval.
Australian Associated Press
