ESSENDON'S finals hopes received a timely boost and all but ended those of West Coast with a thrilling three-point victory at Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
And the 11.11 (77) to 11.8 (74) victory will carry even greater significance for the club's push to September given it came the hard way.
Five minutes into the third quarter, Jason Winderlich marked at the top of Essendon's goalsquare, played on, was dragged down and kicked a behind.
To that point, nothing could have summed up Essendon's day better.
West Coast swept the ball to the other end of the ground and Jamie Cripps converted his shot. Two minutes later, Cripps kicked another to extend the Eagles' lead to a game-high 34 points.
But Winderlich, who was shifted forward after half-time to bring some spark to Essendon's attack, kept going and the move worked. The Bombers kicked five goals in 11 minutes – with two from the soon-to-retire veteran – to get within four points.
It was a match-turning, and perhaps season-defining, burst for the Bombers.
Winderlich's third major and David Zaharakis' classy finish in the final term sealed the deal for the Bombers as the Eagles failed to boot a goal in the last quarter.
The Bombers started the game in terrific fashion – returning skipper Jobe Watson kicked a goal in the first 13 seconds – but after that very early dominance the Eagles took control.
The visitors restricted the Bombers to six inside-50s for the first quarter, and registered 22 themselves.
Their three-point lead could and should have been more, given Essendon had nine turnovers in their defensive half in the first 20 minutes of the game. The ascendancy came in the second quarter, when they kicked six goals to two to build their lead.
The Eagles looked too tall and too strong, and stretched the Bombers, without key position posts Jake Carlisle (back) and Dustin Fletcher (finger). Josh Kennedy kicked three goals for the term, and in defence Jeremy McGovern and Shannon Hurn cut off Essendon's attempts to push forward.
That looked set to continue in the third term after Cripps' cameo, before Dyson Heppell again proved his capacity to lift when his team needs him most.
After just 10 touches to half-time, the Essendon midfielder gathered 13 in the third term and willed his side into the contest. He kept going, finishing with 38 disposals as the most influential player on the ground.
The Eagles will rue their missed chances. For most of the game, they had the Bombers covered, with Luke Shuey (27 disposals), Matt Priddis (25) and Hurn (23, 10 marks) all playing stirring roles.
Had they won, the Eagles would have pushed into the top-eight and ahead of the Bombers on percentage. Instead, Adam Simpson's men are a game behind in the finals race and will need to rely on other results falling their way.
Ultimately, the Eagles were overrun by a tide of Bombers. Eleven Essendon players collected more than 20 disposals, and all of those players were influential.
ESSENDON 2.1 4.5 9.7 11.11 (77)
WEST COAST 2.4 8.4 11.6 11.8 (74)
GOALS
Essendon: Winderlich 3, Daniher 2, Watson, Myers, Stanton, Ambrose, Chapman, Zaharakis
West Coast: Kennedy 3, Cripps 3, Darling 2, Cox, Shuey, Lycett,
BEST
Essendon: Hibberd, Winderlich, Heppell, Watson, Myers, Zaharakis, Daniher
West Coast: Hurn, Priddis, Darling, Mackenzie, Kennedy, Gaff
INJURIES
Essendon: Nil
West Coast: Sam Butler (concussion)
SUBSTITUTES
Essendon: Zach Merrett replaced Jake Melksham in the third quarter
West Coast: Simon Tunbridge replaced Sam Butler in the fourth quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Donlon, Ryan, McInerney
Official crowd: TBC at Etihad Stadium
