Round 5, 1997
Melbourne vs West Coast
Saturday 26 April
Venue: MCG
Attendance: 19,655
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Melbourne | 5.1 | 6.2 | 7.4 | 12.6.78 |
| West Coast | 4.1 | 10.4 | 18.7 | 19.12.126 |
West Coast win by 48 points
Goalkickers: David Neitz 6, Anthony Ingerson 3, Alastair Clarkson 1, Steven Febey 1, Darren Kowal 1
Brownlow Votes:
2 - David Neitz
Milestones:
Nil
In their first day game of the season, Melbourne outscored the Eagles in the first and last quarters but were blown away in-between, losing their seventh straight to West Coast. At one stage the visitors led by 75 points.
Best for Melbourne were Neitz, Clarkson and Stynes.
Glenn Lovett (shoulder) and Sean Charles (hamstring) were replaced in the selected squad by Marcus Seecamp and Darren Kowal. Craig Nettlebeck suffered a shoulder injury and Matthew Febey hurt his quad.
Reserves
Bye
Media
Football Record R6 1997