St Kilda great Nick Riewoldt has accused Melbourne of “planting” a good news story in the AFL media after breaking their duck with a maiden win for 2025 against Fremantle on Saturday.

The Demons endured a horror start to the season, losing their first five games, heaping pressure on coach Simon Goodwin to keep his job.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Nick Riewoldt accuses Melbourne of ‘planted’ media leak.

But they turned a new leaf in the year with a win over finals fancies Fremantle at the MCG on Saturday, winning by 10 points.

In the aftermath of the win, Channel 9’s Tom Morris reported that superstar midfielder Christian Petracca “gave a stirring speech to everyone in the rooms after the game”.

It’s hardly uncommon for a leader of a football club, at any level, to speak to the group after a win, and particularly a drought-breaking one.

Which is why Riewoldt’s ears pricked up when he heard the “weird” report.

“I was fascinated by the news coming out of Melbourne that Christian Petracca gave a rousing speech in the rooms after the win,” he said on Monday night’s episode of The Agenda Setters.

“They were saying the week before that the time for talk is over — to me, this reeked of stage management.

“Like, how many times have you heard of a player giving a rousing speech to the rest of the (group)? You never hear about that, because it happens every week.

“This just feels planted.”

Kane Cornes pressed Riewoldt: “Do you think this was leaked?”

To which he responded: “Yeah — it’s one of the weirdest things I’ve heard, that that would get leaked out into the media, that a player gave a rousing speech.”

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Caroline Wilson noted: “Well, he needed some good publicity, Christian Petracca, because he’s had a bad few weeks.”

The AFL Players’ Association last week said they were “disappointed” by Petracca’s decision to pull out of the investigation into the horrific injuries he suffered in last year’s King’s Birthday clash.

Petracca’s 2024 ended with a lacerated spleen, broken ribs, and a puncture in his lung in an on-field incident that shocked the AFL world.

The AFL and AFLPA launched a joint investigation into the care provided to Petracca after he was allowed to return to the field shortly after suffering the brutal blow.

The gun midfielder expressed his disappointed with the club and even explored a trade away from Melbourne before ultimately returning and pledging his future to the Demons.

The investigation into his injury continued into this year, but hit a roadblock after Petracca withdrew so he could focus on his football.

Wilson revealed the latest details of the ongoing saga last week on The Agenda Setters.

“There is a level of disappointment and disillusionment from the AFLPA that Christian Petracca has pulled out of this investigation,” Wilson said.

“I just want to say that I’m so sympathetic at what happened to him. It was a horrific accident, and the aftermath seems to have been botched.

“(AFLPA president) Paul Marsh comes back from three months leave, and is really worried about what he’s seen. He’s worried about the venue and what happened, the medical services, the hospital services, the AFL themselves, and, of course, the footy club.

“Christian Petracca made his disappointment very clear. There was leaking to the media. There were interviews about how upset he was by this, talk about the way the club treated him, and then to get this far, and it’s taken months for the AFL and the AFLPA to agree on the parameters of the investigation.”

Wilson went on to say Petracca needed to “man up” and fight for something that is important.

“He says he wants to focus on his football and the footy club. I mean, I’m sorry, grow up ... you can’t, you know, chew gum and walk at the same time?” She continued.

“He made so much of a song and a dance and he should have, but you’ve got to show leadership here.

“You’ve got to stand up and actually fight for something as important as this.

“And he is the poster boy for something that can go horribly wrong. To talk to the AFL talk to the PA and say, ‘No, I want to stick with my teammates’.

“I don’t buy that. And I thought it was really disappointing.

“I think he needed to man up.”

Despite Melbourne’s winless start to the season, Petracca’s commitment to the club can’t be questioned.

He has been one of the Demons’ better players so far, and his despair was there for everyone to see after the loss to Geelong in Round 4.

- With Ben Sutton