‘Excuse factory’: AFL club labelled ‘one-man’ team in brutal roasting
An AFL club has been labelled a “one-man” team and an “excuse factory” after a horror loss left the struggling team reeling.
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Essendon captain Zach Merrett has been dubbed a “one-man band” as the Bombers were left reeling from a dismal 61-point loss to Adelaide.
The Bombers may have scored 100 points but the Crows piled on 25 goals, carving Essendon up in a demolition job on at MCG on Saturday.
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Defensive efforts were poor across the board from Essendon, including one from Sam Durham who sagged off Izak Rankine before the Crows X-factor kicked a goal of the year contender from the boundary.
Essendon haven’t won a finals match since 2004 and that drought looks set to continue for another year following a performance that had commentators astonished by a lack of defensive intensity.
Merrett had 36 disposals and kicked four goals, but he was a lone shining light for the Bombers amid fears his career could be wasted with Essendon entering a rebuild mode of sorts.
“What about the role of the superstar captain Zach Merrett in this? Dyson Heppell walks out of the club, retires from Essendon, doesn’t play in a winning final,” the Herald Sun’s Jay Clark said on Fox Footy’s First Crack.
“This bloke (Merrett), five best and fairests, 231 games, he turns 30 this year. He had four goals, 36 possessions, couldn’t have done more, was enormous, he’s always enormous Zach Merrett.
“Is he going to play in a winning final in the red and black? Dyson Heppell didn’t. Would he be worried about suffering the same fate? Do the doubts creep in?
“You hear (coach) Brad Scott has signed til 2027, the list might not be good enough, we need more time. How much time has Zach Merrett got? How much long can he keep putting up with this?
“St Kilda had a crack at him last year, he stayed. He must be the most loyal bloke in football, Zach. One-man band. He’d be feeling sick.”
It was a sentiment echoed by Kayo Call Up winner Jarra Davis, who is giving fans a behind the scenes glimpse at Fox Footy’s Super Saturday coverage this season.
Leigh Montagna added: “I think the football world was feeling for Zach Merrett, the way he’s put in over the last few years. He has tried to lift the standards of the football club. He doesn’t have players to come with him.
“Even some of the leaders around him, like Andy McGrath and (Mason) Redman, guys that are meant to be leaders of the footy club, that do not play with the same desperation and want and will and desire to win that he does.
“I’ve got no doubt he’d be sitting at home really frustrated.
Journalist Jon Ralph said on Fox Footy’s Midweek Tackle Essendon had been an “excuse factory for the last 15 years”.
Speaking on AFL 360, Merrett said a lack of “pressure” around the ball was the No. 1 issue in his side’s loss to Adelaide.
“I watch a lot of footy … we were really poor at that on the weekend,” Merrett said.
“I think that’s the worst we’ve been for 11 or 12 years. It wasn’t acceptable, it wasn’t good enough and we need to respond and be better.”
In 2021, Merrett signed a six-year contract extension through to the end of 2027, but acknowledged Essendon haven’t progressed as far as he hoped.
“I just have so much love for the footy club. I know that everyone’s journey is so different,” the 29-year-old.
“Some guys get finals footy more often than other guys, that’s what makes our game so special. There’s no script that written at the start of the season or your career. I’m fully committed to the club and their build and process.
“To bring in four guys last year and not give up picks, to get more picks last year, to be really stocked up to go again next year and also our salary cap in an amazing spot — I feel comfortable with where we’re going.
“I don’t get the ‘rebuild phase’. Every club is building every year. The lists are always building and evolving and we’re no different.
“We’re trying to fast track as much as we can but in this even competition, it’s difficult to really fast track as much as you want to.”
Merrett revealed he had analysed the lists of every AFL club before recommitting to the Bombers.
“Ironically the best three lists at that time have won the last three premierships,” he said.
“It hasn't probably worked out exactly how I thought it would pan out.
“In that forecast, I didn’t imagine a coaching change 18 months later, guys request trades, talent comes on quicker than others.
“The forecasting stuff for me is really backing in (Sam) Durham and (Nic) Martin and (Jye) Caldwell those mid guys that are 23 or 24.”
As for Essendon’s finals drought, Merrett said: “There’s no doubt, I watch finals teams and get very jealous in September.
“There’s nothing worse than sitting on the couch and watching, it is an envious position. It’s something I’m striving every day to be a part of and I want to be part of it with the Essendon footy club.”
The Bombers will look to bounce back against Port Adelaide at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night.
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