Essendon will be looking to wrap the 2024 season on a good note when they take on the Lions at the Gabba this Saturday night.
A frustrating final month of the campaign has seen the Bombers slip out of finals contention despite their impressive opening half of the year, where the side even sat in the top four at different stages.
For Senior Coach Brad Scott, the steps forward in certain areas of the Dons’ game has been clear but they’re still learning to withstand pressure more frequently from game-to-game.
Despite being out of the top eight race leading into the final round, Scott believes the weekend’s outcome against strong opposition can provide a good baseline for the off-season ahead.
“We’re going full bore at it this week to try and get an outcome and take another step forward to build something for the future,” Scott said.
“Through the weight of our performances throughout this year, we built up everyone’s expectations including our own and we’ve fallen short of that, but the reality is we have to keep working to build a stable and sustainable base so we can challenge.
“As a club, we need to embrace that we want to be a team that is under pressure and we can withstand that pressure.
“We spend every minute of every day working on building a team that (our fans) can be proud of. Right now, we haven’t achieved that but we’ll keep working on it.”
On Saturday Night, the Bombers’ season closer will also host a final career game for former captain Dyson Heppell.
A specific role for the weekend’s clash has allowed the 32-year-old to return to the lineup, with Scott also addressing the decision not to field the veteran in last week’s home defeat to Sydney.
“Dyson will go down as a legend of our club and leave an indelible legacy on this place,” Scott said.
“Last week was a gut-wrenching decision, but the philosophy’s very simple, you play your best team to try and qualify for finals.
“My job is to get Essendon back to playing and winning finals. That’s what we’re trying to do and we won’t let anything stand in the way of that.
“This week we’re out of contention but there’s also the fact that there’s a very clearly defined role for him.”
