Kyle Langford on the two big changes set to improve Essendon in 2020

Essendon midfielder Kyle Langford has revealed the two big changes that will help the Bombers’ push to become a top-four team this year, and shed new light on last year’s elimination final defeat.

Kyle Langford vividly remembers the flight back from Perth last September.

The Essendon midfielder had just played his first AFL final and it had not gone anything like he had hoped as the Bombers suffered a crushing 55-point elimination final defeat to West Coast.

“It’s a long flight back from Perth,” Langford said this week.

“It hurt coming home a loser. Everyone was pretty upset and gutted with it all because we were really confident going into it. The way we went down, we weren’t too happy with. But it makes you want to get back to that and prove to our fans and to the whole competition that we’re good enough to win a final and we can go and be a top-four team.

“We knew a lot of things had to change and we have changed those things.”

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Kyle Langford’s first finals experience last year was not as he had pictured it as Essendon suffered a 55-point loss to West Coast in Perth. Picture: Michael Dodge/AAP

Two changes over pre-season have stood out to Langford more than any others.

One was the appointment of Sean Murphy as the Bombers’ new head of strength and conditioning, which lead to a complete program overhaul.

“Having Sean Murphy come in, he came in and scrapped our whole running program and implemented what he wanted,” Langford said.

“Every year you kind of think, ‘I’ve worked hard in the pre-season’. After this pre-season it’s definitely been the hardest, reflecting back on previous ones. Dylan Shiel commonly says it’s the hardest pre-season he’s done and he’s done a few more than what I have. The whole team, including myself, are feeling a lot fitter and stronger and with the shorter quarter lengths this season, that will be interesting as well. We’re going to be fit and running on top of the ground in the last quarter, I reckon.”

The other big change at Tullamarine has been the addition of former Richmond assistant coach Blake Caracella to the coaching team, who has implemented a handball-happy game style reminiscent of the Tigers.

“He’s got a great footy mind and he’s able to really articulate and help and encourage players to play the way they want to play,” Langford said of Caracella.

“He really helps you build up confidence in yourself which has been great over the pre-season for me.

“He also has his own way he wants to play. It probably looks a little bit similar to Richmond, I’m not sure. But it’s just the way we want to play and we have found it has been a massive strength of ours throughout the two pre-season games. We can see how it works and how damaging it is.”

Kyle Langford wants to become a genuine midfielder this season.

Away from football, Langford has got his golf handicap down to an impressive 9.5 as part of a group of Essendon players who play a round at Sunshine once or twice a week.

But on the training track he is trying to bring a 10/10 effort every time as he looks to further develop as a midfielder this season and improve his consistency.

Having played as a forward throughout his junior football and early AFL years, Langford is hoping this will be the season he becomes a bona fide midfielder.

“I’ve really enjoyed becoming a midfielder and finding a new part of my game and adding another string to my bow,” Langford said.

“I’m developing and I’m really confident that this year I can play my best football to date.

“That consistency is something I’ve focused on the past couple of years and I think everyone does. It’s just about bringing your absolute A-Game to everything you do.

“But I also understand at times you’re going to have lulls and highs and that’s just football.”

Langford is completing a project management course at RMIT part-time as he plans for life after football.

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At 23 years old, he is hopeful he has many good years still ahead of him in the AFL.

But Langford faces an unusual situation this year as a player out of contract in what is set to be an interrupted season due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It makes it very tricky and I think I’m not the only player in this position,” Langford said.

“For me, each game I get, whenever it is, I’ve just got to give it my absolute all. You don’t know when your next game will be, but you just have to try and play your best football.”