MOVING Angus Brayshaw from defence to midfield has proved a masterstroke by Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin.

Not only has Brayshaw thrived in his return to the middle of the ground in the final month of the home and away season, but Jayden Hunt has played his best football of 2022 at half-back and Christian Petracca has moved seamlessly into a more forward-dominant role.

But it's Brayshaw that has turned heads.

Following the round 19 shoot-out loss to the Western Bulldogs, Goodwin was forced into a change ahead of a trip west to face Fremantle on Friday night, with James Harmes suffering concussion.

He decided to shuffle the deck, moving Brayshaw to the middle, recalling Hunt to the backline – after he'd barely played in the seniors for eight weeks – and pushing his Norm Smith medallist forward of the ball.

Brayshaw is no stranger to the midfield, finishing third in the Brownlow Medal in 2018, but had been one of the competition's best intercept defenders through 18 matches.

He earned a spot in the Therabody All-Australian squad of 44 for his backline play and still finished the season with the third most intercept possessions despite the switch of roles.

His impact was instant.

Twenty-eight disposals and five coach's votes in a 46-point thumping of the Dockers was followed by 32, 38 and 27 disposals in matches against Collingwood, Carlton and Brisbane to round out the season.

Statistics provided by Champion Data show the jump he's taken.

The 26-year-old has gone from not playing one minute of midfield time to averaging 17.5 centre bounce attendances over the final month, which has resulted in almost seven clearances and 14.5 contested possessions a game.

Melbourne has been able to cover his move from defence, too. Although it's been multi-factoral, Hunt's addition has been seamless.

The Demons finished the most frugal defence in the competition, averaging just 66 points against in the final four games – all against desperate, quality opponents vying for top-four or top-eight spots at the time – which was slightly improved on the 68 points a game conceded prior to that.

Brayshaw has become more involved in scoring chains, up to almost five a game.

Any fear that Petracca – who was chosen at half-forward in the All-Australian team – would have a diminished impact with a split role has been dispelled.

Although his midfield time has dropped dramatically – from 85 per cent to 58 – and centre bounce attendances from 21 to 13, he's still averaging 28 disposals and kicked a goal a game.

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The flexibility in Melbourne's outfit is apparent, and the scoring has followed.

After averaging 87 points through the first 18 matches, that has lifted to 95 over the final month.

Whether Goodwin continues with the same combination through September, which is likely, he now knows that in Brayshaw he has a player capable of switching between roles to a level as high as anyone in the competition.

Angus Brayshaw's move to the midfield

Note: Mid % includes wing %