Could a new team hotel be the solution to Melbourne's Alice Springs hoodoo?
It's a novel idea but the Demons are willing to give it a crack ahead of Saturday's clash with 15th-placed Gold Coast at Traeger Park.
Every year since 2014, the Dees have played a "home" game for premiership points in Alice Springs. Every year, they have lost.
This time around, there will be a key difference - they won't be playing Port Adelaide, whose record suggests they're more than happy to play in the Top End.
The Dees have also tweaked their travel plans, with the aim of treating it like any other road trip.
"This time, we're going up on Friday. In the past, we've gone up two days beforehand, so we're going with just normal preparation for an away game," stoppages coach Ben Mathews told AAP.
"We'll go up to the ground and familiarise but we won't necessarily have a training session there. We're also staying at a different hotel, so there are a couple of things that have changed.
"You can change little things but like most games, it's about the attitude our team brings on the day and our ability to execute our plan as best as possible."
A premiership player with Sydney in 2005, Mathews says maintaining routine can be a big help for travelling teams.
"We're all kind of creatures of habit, aren't we? A little bit superstitious and a little bit quirky in our preparation," he said.
"We feel like our players are well-prepared. We're off a six-day break so we haven't had too long to over-think things, and we tackle - at their best - a pretty strong team."
Gold Coast are coming off a bye following their loss to Port Adelaide in Shanghai but have received a late injury blow, with Gary Ablett ruled out with shoulder soreness.
The 11th-placed Demons remain without key forward Jesse Hogan, who is recovering from surgery after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, as well as star ruckman Max Gawn (hamstring).
Stand-in ruck Cameron Pedersen was soundly beaten by Todd Goldstein during last week's loss to North Melbourne, and Mathews says the Demons' midfield has been forced to set up more defensively.
"We're obviously less proactive around the stoppages," he said.
"We're really working opponents' bodies over and doing quite a good job, and in fairness, Cam Pedersen and Tom McDonald have been super competitive. We're learning different skills along the way."
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