Bombers Overcome Demons

Essendon moved back into the AFL Top 8 with a 48 point victory over Melbourne at Jihad Stadium on Friday night in their AFL Round 12 clash.

After losing three of their previous four matches heading into the mid-season break, the Bombers blew away the bottom-feeding Demons with a seven goal to one third quarter, to register a 19.17 (131) to 13.5 (83) win.

The Bombers bounced out of the gate kicking five of the game’s opening six goals to take an early stranglehold on the contest.

Midfielders Jobe Watson and Brent Prismall dominated in the middle and skipper Matthew Lloyd joined Hawk legend Leigh Matthews on seventh place on the AFL all-time goalkicking list with 915 career goals after scoring his entire match haul of three goals in the opening quarter as the Bombers took a 19 point lead heading into the quarter time break.

Melbourne got within four points just before half-time, including first career goals from the much hyped Jack Watts and Liam Jurrah and it looked like the Bombers were going to have a tough contest on their hands heading into the second half. But by the five-minute mark of the third term, Essendon had reasserted itself and booted five unanswered goals – last two of the second quarter and opening three goals of the third term via Scott Lucas, Hayden Skipworth and Alwyn Davey, to open up a five goal break.

Lucas, Skipworth and Davey goaled again, while Angus Monfries added another late in the third term to turn a 16 point half time lead to 58 at the final break and it was just then a question of how much the winning margin would be at the final siren.

The intensity of the match fizzled out in the final term as the Bombers failed to carry on their third term blitz to bury the Demons and register a nice percentage booster. Four goals to two in the final quarter the Demons way saw them reduce the margin to 48 at the final bell, but it was all too late.

Watson ended with 28 touches, Prismall 26 and Brent Stanton 27 while Andrew Welsh in his first game after a long injury lineup added 25 possessions. A black mark on the night however was the report of Mark McVeigh late in the third term for striking Jared Rivers.

“I must admit I had just come down from the box just before the break,” Essendon coach Matthew Knights said after the match. “I saw the scuffle break out and I was just preferring our boys kept themselves out of trouble. That wasn’t the case. I haven’t seen the incident live yet. We would love to have him (McVeigh) available for Carlton, Collingwood. They are big games ahead. It would be disappointing if he was rubbed out.”

Knights however was happy with the third quarter effort.

“They weren’t happy with their own output in the second quarter and they raised those issues themselves at halftime in our meeting. It was good to see them address them because we were very, very shabby defensively in that second quarter.”

“Obviously Melbourne was bitterly disappointed with with their last effort on the Queen’s Birthday and they were always going to come with a really good attitude tonight,” Knights added. “I guess to win by 48 points and to get game time through Welsh, Fletcher, McVeigh, Prismall and Reimers was a real positive for us because you do run a little bit of risk when you bring that many players back in that haven’t played a lot of footy.”

The Bombers September aspirations now rest on the next two weeks with “cut-throat” Friday night ‘blockbuster’ matches against Top 8 rivals Carlton & Collingwood.

Posted 20 June 09 in Match Review