“I was eight off at the start of the day and you always hope that you maybe be able to kick eight goals in a game. The last couple of games have been slow for me so I really did set myself to have a big game. It is great to have the record out of the way now because we have a big three weeks coming up and then the finals,” Lloyd said.
But Lloyd didn’t stop kicking goals once he had achieved the goal kicking milestone. He went onto the boot another three for the match to bring his tally to 11 for the game. His final goal came after the final siren - a fitting end to a memorable day for Lloyd and the Essendon Football Club.
“More than anything the form issue is bigger for me than the record. There is nothing better than having a big game and having a win – it makes your week a whole lot better.I was really pleased with the day I had yesterday.”
Lloyd has kicked a bag of 10 goals or more on two previous occasions – in Round 3, 1999 Lloyd booted 13 goals against Sydney and Round 6, 2001 against West Coast he managed 10 majors. Most supporters would agree that yesterday was one of Lloyd’s best ever performances, but the man himself is not quite so sure. “I said after the game that our three best wins for season - Collingwood, West Coast and Brisbane – I have been able to kick five goals and two sixes. They probably give you more satisfaction than yesterday in a 10 goal win. I was asked if that was my best performance ever and I said those three games were probably level with the game yesterday,” Lloyd said.
Lloyd opened with six goals in the first quarter against the Bulldogs and you got the feeling that the question on most people’s lips was how many will he finish with. “I was more thinking that a lot of times in the past I may have had a big quarter or half and then there are times where you don’t go on with it. That was definitely the case at half-time – I didn’t get into it in the second quarter. It is not often you have a quarter like that and I really wanted to have a big second half, so it was good to finish with the number I did.”
Another highlight of Lloyd’s game yesterday was the quality of marks he took. He was devastating on the lead and in the air. His statistics at the end of the match read – 12 kicks, 10 marks and two handballs. “I think last year where I missed eight games and couldn’t touch the football I did lose confidence and touch. This year I have been really happy with my marking and have been working hard on the track with my marking and goal kicking, so it all comes together on matchday. It does give you a bit of satisfaction when it all comes together,” Lloyd said.
As usual Lloyd was more happy that the team had a win rather than focussing on his individual achievement. “I don’t think we had a poor player against the Bulldogs. It is really good when we play a running game and the delivery into the forwardline was fantastic. I think when you have your best team in, which we have since the break, it is amazing the results we have had. The inconsistency we had was because Fletch was out or Hirdy was out – when you have your full team in it does make a difference.
“The next three weeks are massive for us. It in our own hands how high we want to finish. You are up against it if you are travelling interstate in the first week of finals in a knock out. We just have to do our best to win our remaining three games and you never know where we might finish. Richmond beat us last time so we have to turn the tables and win on Sunday,” Lloyd said.
Essendon Football Club is producing a fantastic piece of memorabilia to commemorate Matthew Lloyd becoming the greatest goal kicker in the 106-year history of this club. This limited-edition piece is currently being produced. To ensure you don't miss out, you can call the Bomber Shop on 92300315 to register your interest.
