It’s good to have Jordan Ridley back.

The defender looked more than comfortable in his return from a quad injury on Saturday night, racking up 31 disposals, eight intercept marks and a goal to take home the Yiooken Award for best afield as the Bombers outlasted Richmond by 12 points in Dreamtime at the ‘G.

After a difficult period of time managing a re-aggravation of the injury from pre-season, Ridley wanted to ensure his first game in over 10 months was worth the wait.

“Obviously it’s been a very long time since I’ve played, so I’m just glad to be out there and doing what I love again,” Ridley said.

“Especially early in the year, there were some real low points for me once I re-did it on the cusp of coming back, but I was really adamant that when I came back, I wanted to be absolutely ready and at my best.

“I’m glad I could get somewhere near that straight away.”

The off-season acquisition of Ben McKay has added a new element to Essendon’s defence since Ridley last took his place on the MCG turf, with his presence another key factor in securing a second consecutive Dreamtime win.

Ridley’s rapport with his more familiar defensive partners hasn’t missed a beat, but his on-field relationship with McKay is also off to a quality start.

“The majority of the back six I’ve already played quite a lot of footy with, so it was pretty easy to fit in with them,” Ridley said.

“Obviously ‘Buckets’ (McKay) is new, but I chat a lot of footy to him so it’s reasonably predictable for each other already.

“The guys were great in setting me up tonight, I think I drifted a lot at times just having not played for so long, but I was really grateful for them.”

Ridley fully expected a hot contest against the Tigers irrespective of recent form, with the Bombers’ ability to grit out the result another showing of the growing maturity within the group.

Improving to an 8-2-1 record and gearing up for another massive test against Gold Coast off an eight-day break this Sunday, Ridley and the Dons are ready for an interstate trip that could prove to be one of the games of the round.

“Obviously Richmond are a very proud club and put up a good fight every time we play them, so to wrestle the momentum our way towards the end and get the chocolates was great,” Ridley said.

“It’s just about doubling down our process and making sure we recover really well (for the Gold Coast). We’ve seen some of the footy they’ve played this year has been really impressive, so it’s going to be another hard-fought contest.”