In the aftermath of the Anzac Day draw between Essendon and Collingwood, rival coaches Brad Scott and Craig McRae were quick to support two stars who let golden opportunities slip.
Essendon forward Kyle Langford was superb in attack for the Bombers when kicking four goals but faltered with a potential matchwinning set shot with one minute left.
At the other end of the ground Jamie Elliott, who claimed a remarkable mark in the third term, spilt a testing opportunity for a chest mark while in a scoring position.
Geelong v Carlton LIVE in 4K on Kayo | SATURDAY 4:35PM | New to Kayo? Start your free trial today >
THINK. IS THIS A BET YOU REALLY WANT TO PLACE? Set a deposit limit.
But rather than lament what could have been, both coaches opted instead to focus on the positives from a thrilling encounter in front of 93,644 fans at the MCG.
Scott said the Bombers immediately addressed the issue with Langford, who kicked two goals early in the last quarter to wrest the momentum back towards Essendon.
“It was a great opportunity for me as coach,” Scott said.
“I said to Langers, in front of all the players, ‘Did you follow your routines?’ Because he has an incredibly consistent routine that he just drills week in, week out. He said, ‘Yep’.
“That’s all we’re asking (them) to do. Follow your process, your routine and try to execute. This game is not perfect. You’re going to miss some.
“The mistakes that we get really frustrated by are when we go away from our system or what we train. And if he’d gone away from his process, then there’d be an issue. But he didn’t. He just didn’t execute. He usually does.
“If I’m going to stick true to talking to the players about what we value … we’re not going to hang guys out to dry based on the result, then that was the perfect opportunity to reinforce that.”
Zach Merrett on playing extra time | 13:47
Collingwood coach Craig McRae adopted a similar position when asked about Elliott, who was leading to deep in the flank in the dying stages.
“It would have been one of those stories of Jamie doing it again (if he had) taken the mark. Whether we would have kicked it or not, that’s a space we don’t live in,” he said.
“I know one thing. We won’t review the game of ‘what ifs’ (because) I’m sure they would have just as many as us. What if Langdon kicks that goal? What if? We don’t live in that space. We’ll work on the things that we can really control.”
That said, McRae felt perplexed when it came to considering how to assess the match.
He usually enjoys a glass of red wine while watching a replay of Collingwood matches but said that, as a result of it being a draw, he might opt for a glass of white wine instead.
For the second match in a week after their comeback win over Port Adelaide, the Magpies were slow to start, and were again forced to fight their way back into the match.
They were beaten around the stoppages again, with Essendon claiming 40 clearances to 23 for the match.
But McRae said it felt as though the Magpies, which edged into the eight for the first time this year temporarily, were moving forward. They face Carlton in another blockbuster at the MCG next Friday night.
Essendon, meanwhile, is sitting in sixth position with four wins, though their percentage is inferior to the other incumbents in the eight.
Anzac Day Medallist Zach Merrett believes they have been strong for much of the season, barring two disappointing quarters against Port Adelaide in Rd 4 when they were beaten by 69 points.
“I think my teammates and myself are always extremely disappointed to not get the win. In my 11 years at the club, no one’s ever walked off happy losing,” Merrett said.
“But I think we’re getting really clear on what we expect from each other, with the behaviour and actions that we want to see more consistently. That’s becoming clearer by the day and I think now we’re starting to see it live throughout games.
“Guys are rewarding each other and also holding each other accountable throughout the game, which is hopefully pleasing.”
