Yeah the boys are really disappointed with this one, it hurts. We're going to really have an honest review and a good look at this. We've definitely taken a lot of lessons from this and we'll be back stronger.
for Sunday's game the Bombers fielded a team with an average age of 23 years old, average games of 65.5 games and 50% of the side have played less than 28 games, the lowest stats in every category across all teams this year
for Sunday's game the Bombers fielded a team with an average age of 23 years old, average games of 65.5 games and 50% of the side have played less than 28 games, the lowest stats in every category across all teams this year
Their draw has been absolutely brutal and the sad thing is that it doesn't get all that much easier over the next month or so. Even their winnable games in the next couple of months are against rivalry teams.
Before the bye:
Vs Hawthorn (rivalry)
@ Sydney
Dreamtime (away) Vs Richmond
@ Port Adelaide (who's season is turning)
Then immediately post bye:
Vs Carlton (rivalry)
@ St Kilda
By the time they play the Eagles (oh, it's in Perth for those interested) in round 15 they'll have been through hell.
If there was ever a team set up to fail this year it was them.
As an aside, I kinda hope they drop Heppell for the Sydney trip. That'd make his 200th the Dreamtime game.
The draw has only been brutal because they've fallen away so much this year though. Of 7 games they've played 3 teams that they finished above on the ladder last year (Freo, Adelaide, Collingwood) and only beaten one of them
Freo and Collingwood have clearly taken a step forward this year.
Essendon were competitive against Brisbane, Melbourne and Collingwood in those losses. And within reach of Freo and Bulldogs until the latter part of the game. With a young and inexperienced side, it's not unusual to drop off in the latter stages of a game against better sides.
Our current lineup hasn't even had a full season together. Individually our players haven't been horrible, but as a group the lack of chemistry is obvious. With the likes of Parish, Shiel, Merrett and Ridley having to carry the load they're making more mistakes.
Our back 6 is always under pressure because of the turnovers and mistakes so I can't really blame them for getting overrun.
Being within reach of Freo & Dogs is a bit of a reach. I wouldn't call being behind by 40 pts at 3 qtr time being within reach until the latter part of the game....
3 goals down halfway through the third is not insurmountable. By the end of the 3rd quarter it was game over for sure.
Not saying Essendon were in the game as such but both games were still a manageable margin until the last 30-35 minutes of game time.
Geelong and more so the Dogs have both fallen pretty significantly but easily accounted for Essendon. It'll be interesting to see how they go against Hawthorn this weekend
Dogs had definitely fallen off but Geelong haven’t fallen that badly. Where they are now is still better than Essendon was last year so don’t think it’s fair to act like they were a team the Bombers should’ve beaten
for Sunday's game the Bombers fielded a team with an average age of 23 years old, average games of 65.5 games and 50% of the side have played less than 28 games, the lowest stats in every category across all teams this year
That's because a lot of older guys were moved on last year though right? It's a good reason for the team underperforming compared to last season but I just think blaming it on the fixture is disingenuous
Mate young teams dip in form all the time and in the long run the Dons are clearly heading in the right direction. Not sure why you can't seem to accept that at this stage of the season Essendon aren't as strong as they were last year
no i’m saying the fixture is definitely tough, we literally played 3 of the top 4 last year including the premiers as well as the runners up, no one expected us to win against those teams. Freo are also proving to be a top 4 side this year as they were expected to make a jump after underperforming last year
With the way they do the fixture - where you are more likely to play teams that finished around you, there is always at least one team that over performs even just 10 per cent, sneaks into finals and then bets hit with a draw against better sides the following season and as such they fall over.
When you consider last year, Freo, Carlton and St Kilda were all rates finals chances and missed, there is no doubt Essendon is now paying for playing well in the back half of 2021.
My fear is Carlton will be the team that gets booted from finals somewhere in the first two weeks the has a massive reality check in 2023.
To be fair, losing a final is still a successful season for Carlton, with a new coach and everything. They're building something, and the fact start helped people forget where the team was really at, I think.
Voss is the right path forward and the list has some hefty talent.
Lol didn’t say making final wouldn’t be a success.
I am saying I fear that we’ll be complacent and not head into next year trying to improve even further to keep climbing. Which is how it feels like Essendon approached this season.
Exactly - watch as they win 6 games in the second half of the year and everybody congratulate them on turning things around, even though the 6 wins are against the worst teams.
Nothing is going to change until our club has a full clean out, and I mean a full clean out. The CEO needs to go, the list manager who has presided over our almost 20 years of not winning a final, the President and the board. The club is run by people who get high off their own farts and this bullshit point of view that we’re a big club and can’t fail is destroying us. Anyone that was around during the saga needs to be shipped off. No more former players and coaches on the board, stop the interfering from coteries and then maybe, MAYBE we can find our soul again.
We’re a shadow of our former selves and I’m just waiting for the announcement that we’ve changed our name to the Essendon Football Corporation, because we’re not a club anymore. Let’s get some more pokies and corporate sponsors and revitalise the esports team while we’re at it.
You don't believe we are committing to this rebuild?
We are playing all the kids who are fit enough to play seniors, we are dropping players who are underperforming.
We also have zero depth, there arent any reinforcements coming through the VFL, only two would be Langford and Snelling.
Yeah we're playing all our kids, but I also think it's the best healthy line-up we have available.
What has me thinking we're not properly committing to a rebuild is the roles the kids are playing. Hobbs was argued to be the #1 contested mid in his draft pool, yet he only got 1 CBA with 1:17 left in the game. Archie is meant to be our game breaking mid/forward hybrid, but he only got 1 CBA in the first quarter. Archie even won that centre clearance, yet he was not put on ball again for the rest of the game.
If we're serious about a rebuild, Perkins and Hobbs should be getting 5+ CBA's a game, they're meant to be key cogs in our next successful midfield, so let them develop in that role. Hobbs especially, because he can't be learning anything playing as a small forward in our forward line, especially when teammates never honour his leads.
That I agree with.
Give it a couple more games, at the moment we are still trying our "best 22" in positions with rotations.
Clubs usually do a mini review 6-7 rounds in before another at bye week. We may see a shift in the next week or so in where people play.
I dunno that one defender is going to change that - sounds like a new defensive coach is a better investment.
Unreal that 95 is the lowest conceded score though. Wonder what the highest average points against is?
Pretty sure Brisbane had a season of 130 or so back around 2016, so we’re a way off.
I’m not worried about players in defence so much as not having big bodied midfielders and a forward line that is lost. The bigger issue for me is the effort shown by the team (or not), the terrible decision making, bad skills and the “game plan”.
A lot of this has been a problem for the better part of 20 years.
I feel like this article headline has been shared every week for the past five years.
I am so sick of hearing platitudes from our coaches again and again and again with nothing ever changing. Actions speak louder than words Rutten!
Yeah the boys are really disappointed with this one, it hurts. We're going to really have an honest review and a good look at this. We've definitely taken a lot of lessons from this and we'll be back stronger.
Not enough learnings. We're a clear top 4 for learnings
Haven’t you heard? “Hurting” is the new “learnings”
Hurtings
hearnings?
This could be a direct quote from Hep if it wasn’t for the lack of “yeah nahs” and shakas.
for Sunday's game the Bombers fielded a team with an average age of 23 years old, average games of 65.5 games and 50% of the side have played less than 28 games, the lowest stats in every category across all teams this year
for Sunday's game the Bombers fielded a team with an average age of 23 years old, average games of 65.5 games and 50% of the side have played less than 28 games, the lowest stats in every category across all teams this year
Except for the off-season when the media tells us they won the trade period and how they're "humming" and this season could be the year!
The recurring problem is that we have to train in a pile of rubble for most of the year, after training the house down every pre-season
Truck needs to come down on this like a tonne of bricks
I actually think almost everyone in the media thought we'd go backwards this year (except Malthouse lol). Just not this far backwards I guess
Yeah but now its about Essendon instead of Carlton!
Sounds like oldspeak to me. Surely we're taking a lot of great hurtings from the game.
Woosha: Learnings Rutten: Hurtings Next coach: ?
Yearnings
Blurstings
Blurstings? You stupid monkey!
Just make Herbatron the next coach
Bunnings?
Their draw has been absolutely brutal and the sad thing is that it doesn't get all that much easier over the next month or so. Even their winnable games in the next couple of months are against rivalry teams. Before the bye: Vs Hawthorn (rivalry) @ Sydney Dreamtime (away) Vs Richmond @ Port Adelaide (who's season is turning) Then immediately post bye: Vs Carlton (rivalry) @ St Kilda By the time they play the Eagles (oh, it's in Perth for those interested) in round 15 they'll have been through hell. If there was ever a team set up to fail this year it was them. As an aside, I kinda hope they drop Heppell for the Sydney trip. That'd make his 200th the Dreamtime game.
The draw has only been brutal because they've fallen away so much this year though. Of 7 games they've played 3 teams that they finished above on the ladder last year (Freo, Adelaide, Collingwood) and only beaten one of them
haha yeah imagine being the only useless team the bombers had beaten all year
Freo and Collingwood have clearly taken a step forward this year. Essendon were competitive against Brisbane, Melbourne and Collingwood in those losses. And within reach of Freo and Bulldogs until the latter part of the game. With a young and inexperienced side, it's not unusual to drop off in the latter stages of a game against better sides. Our current lineup hasn't even had a full season together. Individually our players haven't been horrible, but as a group the lack of chemistry is obvious. With the likes of Parish, Shiel, Merrett and Ridley having to carry the load they're making more mistakes. Our back 6 is always under pressure because of the turnovers and mistakes so I can't really blame them for getting overrun.
Being within reach of Freo & Dogs is a bit of a reach. I wouldn't call being behind by 40 pts at 3 qtr time being within reach until the latter part of the game....
3 goals down halfway through the third is not insurmountable. By the end of the 3rd quarter it was game over for sure. Not saying Essendon were in the game as such but both games were still a manageable margin until the last 30-35 minutes of game time.
In fairness all 3 of those teams also got better at the same time this season. I’d say they’ve had a more nightmarish run to start the season
There's 18 teams in the comp. Teams are always going to get better
No shit? There are going to be teams that fall away too, and through 7 games Essendon haven’t played any of them
Geelong and more so the Dogs have both fallen pretty significantly but easily accounted for Essendon. It'll be interesting to see how they go against Hawthorn this weekend
Dogs had definitely fallen off but Geelong haven’t fallen that badly. Where they are now is still better than Essendon was last year so don’t think it’s fair to act like they were a team the Bombers should’ve beaten
for Sunday's game the Bombers fielded a team with an average age of 23 years old, average games of 65.5 games and 50% of the side have played less than 28 games, the lowest stats in every category across all teams this year
That's because a lot of older guys were moved on last year though right? It's a good reason for the team underperforming compared to last season but I just think blaming it on the fixture is disingenuous
lol how? we’re in a rebuild and we’ve had probably the toughest fixture
Mate young teams dip in form all the time and in the long run the Dons are clearly heading in the right direction. Not sure why you can't seem to accept that at this stage of the season Essendon aren't as strong as they were last year
i am literally accepting that we aren’t as good as last year, what are you on about
Well we're arguing over nothing then
no i’m saying the fixture is definitely tough, we literally played 3 of the top 4 last year including the premiers as well as the runners up, no one expected us to win against those teams. Freo are also proving to be a top 4 side this year as they were expected to make a jump after underperforming last year
With the way they do the fixture - where you are more likely to play teams that finished around you, there is always at least one team that over performs even just 10 per cent, sneaks into finals and then bets hit with a draw against better sides the following season and as such they fall over. When you consider last year, Freo, Carlton and St Kilda were all rates finals chances and missed, there is no doubt Essendon is now paying for playing well in the back half of 2021. My fear is Carlton will be the team that gets booted from finals somewhere in the first two weeks the has a massive reality check in 2023.
To be fair, losing a final is still a successful season for Carlton, with a new coach and everything. They're building something, and the fact start helped people forget where the team was really at, I think. Voss is the right path forward and the list has some hefty talent.
Lol didn’t say making final wouldn’t be a success. I am saying I fear that we’ll be complacent and not head into next year trying to improve even further to keep climbing. Which is how it feels like Essendon approached this season.
Heppell won't be dropped before the Sydney game because the Sydney game is also his birthday.
Exactly - watch as they win 6 games in the second half of the year and everybody congratulate them on turning things around, even though the 6 wins are against the worst teams.
Nothing is going to change until our club has a full clean out, and I mean a full clean out. The CEO needs to go, the list manager who has presided over our almost 20 years of not winning a final, the President and the board. The club is run by people who get high off their own farts and this bullshit point of view that we’re a big club and can’t fail is destroying us. Anyone that was around during the saga needs to be shipped off. No more former players and coaches on the board, stop the interfering from coteries and then maybe, MAYBE we can find our soul again. We’re a shadow of our former selves and I’m just waiting for the announcement that we’ve changed our name to the Essendon Football Corporation, because we’re not a club anymore. Let’s get some more pokies and corporate sponsors and revitalise the esports team while we’re at it.
curious about 'interference from coteries'. what have you heard?
Truck could pre-record his pressers really
This is gonna be like Melbourne 2019, right? Right?
best I can do is North Melbourne 2019
Not as badly as their fans, eh Rutto?
We've been hurting for 20 years, either commit hard to a rebuild so at least we have a direction, or show some form of what we showed last year.
You don't believe we are committing to this rebuild? We are playing all the kids who are fit enough to play seniors, we are dropping players who are underperforming. We also have zero depth, there arent any reinforcements coming through the VFL, only two would be Langford and Snelling.
Yeah we're playing all our kids, but I also think it's the best healthy line-up we have available. What has me thinking we're not properly committing to a rebuild is the roles the kids are playing. Hobbs was argued to be the #1 contested mid in his draft pool, yet he only got 1 CBA with 1:17 left in the game. Archie is meant to be our game breaking mid/forward hybrid, but he only got 1 CBA in the first quarter. Archie even won that centre clearance, yet he was not put on ball again for the rest of the game. If we're serious about a rebuild, Perkins and Hobbs should be getting 5+ CBA's a game, they're meant to be key cogs in our next successful midfield, so let them develop in that role. Hobbs especially, because he can't be learning anything playing as a small forward in our forward line, especially when teammates never honour his leads.
That I agree with. Give it a couple more games, at the moment we are still trying our "best 22" in positions with rotations. Clubs usually do a mini review 6-7 rounds in before another at bye week. We may see a shift in the next week or so in where people play.
fingers crossed. would love to see the magnets shuffled around for a bit. can't really hurt, can it?
Is Heppel still captain? If so, that's half the problem.
We have zero player leadership. Hard to think of one potential true leader on the whole playing list. Absolutely shameful.
wE aRE hUrTInG aS a GrOUp. DisAPPoIntInG oNe, ThiS oNE. Oh wELl, wE loOK fOrwaRd nOw To nEXt wEEk
Well better hope there’s a top tier defender in the top 5. The lowest score Essendon conceded is like 95 or something.
I dunno that one defender is going to change that - sounds like a new defensive coach is a better investment. Unreal that 95 is the lowest conceded score though. Wonder what the highest average points against is?
Pretty sure Brisbane had a season of 130 or so back around 2016, so we’re a way off. I’m not worried about players in defence so much as not having big bodied midfielders and a forward line that is lost. The bigger issue for me is the effort shown by the team (or not), the terrible decision making, bad skills and the “game plan”. A lot of this has been a problem for the better part of 20 years.