Winning ugly

The game looked anything but ugly in the opening term as the Bombers piled on five goals to hold a 22-point lead at the first change. The Bombers were +24 for handball receives and +16 for uncontested possessions highlighting the side’s ability to play the fast, running style of game that has become a hallmark of the Dons best football this season.

But the tide turned in the second quarter as the Blues slow possession game stymied the Dons attack. It remained that way in the third quarter and continued into the last. The Bombers were down by 12 points midway through the fourth quarter and looked destined for defeat. Somehow the side ground out a win without hitting any great heights outside of the first quarter and the final stages. No side can play perfect football every week, so wins like this are vital.

The final minutes

The Bombers turned the game around the contest with the side’s midfield crucial in winning several key one on one contests. The free flowing play that had been absent since quarter time became more prevalent as the ground opened up with fatigue setting in for both sides.

In the final ten minutes the Bombers kicked 3.1.19 to Carlton’s 0.1.1.

The Bombers extra weapon

There were 58,562 fans in attendance at the match but throughout the last quarter, it seemed like twice that many. The Bombers fans urged their team on at every opportunity. There were rapturous cheers for every 50:50 contest that went the Bombers way but the loudest roar was saved for Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti when he kicked the sealer.

It’s the tenth time this season the Bombers have had 47,000 people or more at a match. Essendon is also the number one ranked side for total match attendance this season.

The Zach Merrett incident

The Bombers star has been getting a lot of extra attention following his best and fairest winning year last season. He took a whack to the back in the second quarter against the Blues and then was involved in an incident with Lachie Plowman.

Here is John Worsfold’s assessment:

"I'm expecting the MRP will look at that and grade it; you guys may have seen more and taken more note, but I don't know how they'll grade it.

"Some of those gradings are a fine, if they're really high gradings, they may ride into a suspension but Zach has a good record so it's not like the [Luke] Hodge incident where he got fined but it rolled into a suspension.

"I'm sure Zach's disappointed, especially because again we sit here wondering if it's going to affect the team.

"We want to be better than that.

"We'll certainly talk through it and ask, one, why it happened, and then what happened after that, and resilience and experience is something he can learn from."

Hooker holds his nerve

As the game became more open in the final term, Cale Hooker was able to create more one on one opportunities. And in those situations there are few defenders that can go with the All Australian.

He took five marks in that last term and while his radar was off, he managed to hold his nerve and nail the set shot that put the Bombers in front.

Hooker has had 17 scoring shots in the last three weeks and is up to 35 goals for the year.

The Captain leads from the front

Dyson Heppell was probably the Bombers best four-quarter contributor in the match. He amassed a game high 34 disposals, nine ground ball gets, 15 contested possessions, six clearances, six tackles and gained 424 metres.

Walla proves the difference

Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti was the spark when defeat seemed inevitable. Orazio Fantasia's absence deprived the Bombers of a key line-breaker but Walla stepped up to the plate.

He kicked the goal, with two opponents hanging off him, to bring the Bombers back to within a kick. A smother from a Carlton kick out a short time later further signified Essendon’s hunger for the contest and his match winning performance was sealed when he streamed into the open goal with barely a minute on the clock.

Losing Orazio Fantasia

The Bombers were down a player before quarter time. Orazio Fantasia has kicked 38 goals this season but is likely to spend some time on the sidelines with a hamstring injury. The exact length of time will be known early in the week.

Fantasia’s absence saw the Bombers down a rotation throughout most of the game. It meant midfielders were required to spend extra time in the forward line rather than on the bench.

The Bombers have James Kelly and Andrew McGrath set to return this week while possible forward line options could include Jayden Laverde, Kyle Langford and Josh Begley.