For years, Essendon’s ability to defend and stifle opposition ball movement has been their biggest Achilles heel.
It’s a problem that has plagued Matthew Knights, James Hird, Mark Thompson, John Worsfold, Ben Rutten and others while corrupting the club of success for over two decades.
But there are signs that the wheel is turning under Brad Scott, following the Bombers’ dramatic two-point win on Friday night.
While all the fallout has focused on Sam Draper’s ‘frog dive’ and the subsequent non-decision, David King believes the Bombers deserve plenty of plaudits for their defensive actions.
Adelaide struggled to move the ball all night as Scott’s men thwarted consistent attacks higher and higher up the ground.
The Crows were reduced to 43 inside 50s, well down on their 2024 average, despite owning the footy inside their forward half for the final 10 minutes of the Round 6 loss.
King says Essendon is starting to bore the fruit planted during pre-season.
“The biggest thing that hit me last night was the organization of their deep three to their own goal, the defensive guys… when you look at the numbers they’ve had 50 intercepts, they’ve won the ball back 50 times between the arcs,” he began on SEN’s Crunch Time.
“If you go back the last six years… they’ve only had better than that three times.
“They’ve worked tirelessly through the summer, I was out there watching in the pre-season. I didn’t come through in the first month of the footy, it was a mess because they were out of source, out of position and it made them look awful as a footy team.
“But it was rigid last night, so they had enough heat on the ball… in the end, the Crows have 16 inside 50s because they can’t move the ball.
“I think if they can hang onto that (profile), it’s the first time we’ll see Essendon with a rigid defensive plan. We haven’t seen that for years.”
“You have to acknowledge that, it’s a huge number. .. I’m glad for Essendon that they won that game because it’s hard to fuel this defensive model if you’re not winning.”
The AFL average is in the mid-30s.
The controversial win saw Essendon improve from its record to four wins from six games, with a favourable month to come.
The Bombers face all of West Coast, North Melbourne and Richmond – three of the current bottom four – in the next five weeks. Win all three, and Essendon will undoubtedly be engrained in the top eight come the mid-season bye.
Scott and his side were 5th after Round 17 last year but fell off the wagon to miss out on September action.
But as Gerard Whateley notes: “They should be the right side of the ledger for a long way from here.”
Essendon has ensured that next week’s Anzac Day clash will have the leadup it deserves, with the Bombers considered a live chance against the reigning premiers next Thursday.
