They just refused to go away.

Even with a 25-point deficit weighing on the Bombers’ shoulders early in the fourth term of Sunday’s clutch one-point win over Fremantle, Assistant Coach Dale Tapping never felt like the result was out of reach.

With an inspired 15-minute, five-goal stretch, the Bombers breathed life back into the crowd, the game and even their potential push for a finals spot, looking to use their late heroics as a platform for the final three weeks of the home-and-away campaign.

The message for the forward line at the final change was clear from Tapping – be direct, attack centrally and be ready for the moment.

“(It’s) clearly a fantastic result for us but it never really felt we were out of the game,” Tapping said.

“You look at scoring shots and numbers and it really felt like we were right in the game, it was more about just grabbing hold of our opportunities.

“Speaking to the forwards at three-quarter-time, it just felt like ‘our game’s in good shape here, we’ve just got to be ready’. We made a couple of little changes, but we attacked the game a bit more through the middle of the ground which we were searching for all day and got opportunities ahead of the ball.

“We never felt we were too far away.”

Tapping was most impressed with the competitiveness of his forward line from the dramatic win, especially in the way they responded from last week’s heavily criticised defeat to St Kilda.

A key facet in that setup ahead of the ball was Jake Stringer, who paired his typical scoreboard impact with one of his best pressure performances of the season.

In a tweaked role as a deeper forward target, Stringer laid 10 tackles among 25 pressure acts for the game and received welcome support in a forward line that worked hard over the course of the day.

“We had a really clear focus after the St Kilda game where our contest was clearly not where it should’ve been and that goes for any team really,” Tapping said.

“The forwards were really good all day, first and foremost they competed really well. We got a really good competitive effort out of Jake (Stringer) who played a slightly different role a bit deeper.

“’Gresh’ was really good at the fall of the ball, ‘Menz’ provided some hard running up through the middle, ‘Cads’, Jones and Langford did their thing with the flexibility they’ve got, so it was a really good look for us.

“You get a lot more to look at when you go forward (through the middle of the ground) and we spoke at three-quarter-time about anticipating and setting ourselves up for best position that the ball’s going to come that way.”

Behind the ball, the Dons also stood up in some critical late moments.

A late smother from Jake Kelly helped the side cling onto their late momentum and the run of Mason Redman provided enough charge in transition to heap the pressure on the Dockers’ defence at the other end.

The synergy between Essendon’s three lines showed a semblance of their early-season form, something Tapping’s hoping can remain at the forefront in the coming weeks.

“Defensively, I thought we were really sound,” Tapping said.

“(Fremantle) got some good looks, they’re a very good team and it’s really clear in terms of how they play, they really want to own the corridor and always drive solidly through the middle and look to scan inside, they’ve got some real weapons.

“They exposed us a couple of times but I thought for the vast majority we were able to close that off or at least create a certain amount of delay, which took a bit of speed off their offence and gave our defenders a chance to get set.

“Our contest forward of the ball was a lot better, our ability to halve our aerial contests defensively, we could create some rebound off the back of it and challenge Fremantle in the offence.

Following a week of mounting external pressure, Essendon’s win has restored some much-needed confidence heading into a crucial run of games which could prove to be season-defining.

A six-day break leads into their next fixture against the SUNS under the Marvel Stadium roof, before matchups with two top-four teams await in the form of Sydney and the Brisbane Lions.

For Tapping and the Bombers, the approach remains one week at a time, being ready to seize the moment when it comes.

“Right through the whole ladder, it’s ebbs and flows,” Tapping said.

“It’s critical contests, it’s moments, you’ve just got to be armed and ready and prepare really well. We’ve got six days into Gold Coast so we’ve got an important recovery period now and that’s our next challenge, you can’t look too much further than that.

“Teams are up, teams are down, teams are in front, teams get caught on the line, you don’t have to be off by much to miss. We’ve just got to keep taking control of what we can. If we do that, we give ourselves the best chance.

“You just stay sharp in what you can do.”