AFL 2023: Essendon’s slide down the ladder is not terminal – yet
The Bombers beat Sydney almost everywhere but the scoreboard on Saturday night, Glenn McFarlane breaks down what the loss means, and where the club can improve.
AFL
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Essendon midfielder Jye Caldwell is confident the Bombers can still make a last-month assault on qualifying for the finals despite Saturday night’s heartbreaking two-point loss to Sydney.
They have lost five of their past six matches and have now tumbled out of the top eight, but Caldwell says he has faith the group can still land some competitive punches after closing out the game against the Swans strongly.
The Bombers should win their next two games against West Coast and North Melbourne but face Greater Western Sydney and Collingwood in the last fortnight of the regular season.
“The drive is definitely still there,” Caldwell said. “The carrot (of the finals) is still dangling.”
“We believe in ourselves. We’ve got four games left and we will put our best foot forward.”
The emerging midfielder stressed that the Bombers won’t be taking the Eagles lightly next week, saying this round had shown that any club on their day can cause an upset.
“We just went through a few KPIs (after the game against Sydney) and I think we beat them by 23 in contested possessions, and we beat them with inside 50s and forward half intercepts,” he said.
“Usually when you win those indicators, you win the game. It’s a bittersweet moment.”
On metrics alone, it was hard to see how the Bombers didn’t win this contest, given their dominance on the stats sheets in some of the key areas.
They led inside 50s by a whopping 22, clearances by 13, and contested possessions by 23, but at one stage trailed the Swans by 37 points before a barnstorming finish just failed to see them get over the line.
Part of that comes back to the rock-solid nature of Sydney’s defence, who repelled so many Bombers’ moves forward, but it also had something to do with the fact that Essendon couldn’t take their chances early in the game.
The Bombers will be rueing mistakes and missed opportunities, including a second term when they gave up five goals from turnovers and when they scored from just over 20 per cent of their inside 50s.
Caldwell, 22, says the emergence of young players such as Ben Hobbs had been crucial, especially in the absence of a number of experienced players who are now out injured.
“Everyone has a responsibility out there, and I feel like the young blokes are stepping up … we don’t need to play brilliantly, we just need to play our roles and trust each other,” he said.
DONS PREACHING PATIENCE
Essendon coach Brad Scott knows the club’s long-suffering fans might not like to hear it, but he is adamant he won’t be taking shortcuts in pursuit of long-term success.
That’s why he is urging the fans to be excited about the future, while giving them a subtle reminder to stay the course – even if it means missing out on another AFL finals series.
That prospect looks a live one now, unless Essendon can beat GWS and/or Collingwood off the back of what should be upcoming wins against West Coast and North Melbourne.
“We won’t sacrifice the short term for the long term,” Scott said.
He knows that would frustrate long-suffering Bombers fans, who haven’t tasted a finals win since 2004.
“The real challenge where we are at the moment is we have tried to embrace the excitement of our fans and our fans have been unbelievable,” Scott said.
“We want them to be excited, but we don’t want anyone who is connected to our club to lose sight … while we are disappointed in the short term, we are really focused on what we want to build. If that means we win enough games to compete in September, great. If it doesn’t we will just keep building and staying optimistic.”
BOMBERS MUST BE ACTIVE POSTSEASON
The loss of Jordan Ridley potentially for the rest of the season only highlights the Dons’ need to chase another key defender at season’s end.
Essendon general manager of football Josh Mahoney confirmed on Saturday night that the Bombers are looking at a number of options, including North Melbourne free agent Ben McKay.
Mahoney told 3AW the Bombers would likely be active in the postseason, with free agent McKay in the calculations.
There is salary cap scope to chase new talent as well as maintain the players they need to keep.
At one stage of the season, the Bombers feared Mason Redman and Darcy Parish could be on the move. But with Redman now locked away long-term, Mahoney is now hopeful Parish will put pen to paper with a possible deal just weeks away.
One of the other list management decisions centres on former captain Dyson Heppell, who is keen to go on. After 11 consecutive games with 20 – plus disposals, and yet another strong finish on Saturday night, the 31-year-old looks like he might get that opportunity now off the back of a solid year.
Defender Brandon Zerk-Thatcher has attracted strong interest from rival clubs, so he will be a ‘watch this space’.
Mahoney said Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti is on the cusp of a senior return before the end of the season, with a decision to be made on his future at the end of the season. He has only played six AFL games this season.
WHY THIS LOOKS LIKE THE RIGHT GAME TO BLOOD THE KID
Scott concedes he is even more frustrated than the fans that there is no timeline yet for possible returns for Sam Draper and Jake Stringer, while Jordan Ridley is up against it in his quest of a return this season.
The Bombers have been forced to have a good look at some of their young talent in recent weeks.
And Saturday’s clash with bottom placed West Coast might be the ideal time for last year’s No. 5 draft pick Elijah Tsatas to get his first taste of AFL football.
Tsatas, 18, is the only member of last year’s draft top 10 yet to win senior selection, owing to preseason knee surgery that sidelined him for the first half of the season.
He has now played six VFL games with the Bombers – averaging 25 disposals – and gets another chance to impress when he takes on Sydney at Windy Hill on Sunday afternoon.
Scott said this week the coaching staff had been impressed with Tsatas in recent VFL games, but had been getting him to work on a few parts to his game.
A debut next week wouldn’t surprise.
Imagine if he could get a taste of it this year and get to work in 2024 alongside impressive youngsters Nic Martin, Hobbs, Durham, Archie Perkins and co.
IS KYLE LANGFORD AN ALL-AUSTRALIAN SMOKY?
It’s a crowded space for All-Australian contenders for the forwards spots, but Brad Scott says Kyle Langford should at least be in the mix.
Langford has now kicked 40 goals this year, with his five goals on Saturday night going a long way to keeping the Bombers in the hunt when they looked out of it.
He has had an exceptional season, especially given he started the first game in defence before being moved forward out of necessity.
“He would have to be in the conversation,” Scott said when asked if Langford was an All-Australian chance.
“To think that he played the first round in defence … we probably cost him.”
He will remain forward for the rest of the season, but Scott says long-term he would love to try him in a few different positions when the opportunity arises.
“He has been superb,” Scott said. “Even in the future he is capable of playing just about every position on the ground.”
Importantly, he rarely misses, and his accuracy has been such a part of repertoire this year.
More Coverage
Originally published as AFL 2023: Essendon’s slide down the ladder is not terminal – yet
Why not Port, Ken? Swans show exactly why with finals lesson
Ken Hinkley asked his side pre-game, why not us? The answer was shown on the field at the SCG, which is as simple as they’re not good enough to take that last step, writes Matt Turner.
‘Pretty sad’: NRL ‘should be embarrassed’
In a battle of the footy codes on Friday night in Sydney, the AFL has claimed a huge victory in the heart of the rugby league world.