For an emerging Essendon list, the game was a harsh lesson about the quality of the best sides in the competition and the work that will need to be done to bridge the gap.
The performance of some of Essendon’s younger players was the major positive on an otherwise dark day. Patrick Ryder was outstanding down back and clearly Essendon's best player. Alwyn Davey - still to play 20 games of AFL football - continued to show he will be a long-term fixture in the Essendon side.
Essendon assistant coach, Scott Camporeale, said the performance of the team’s younger players was an area worth noting.
“I think Paddy was our best player today by a street,” Camporeale said. “He really set an example for our guys with they way he was able to hold an experienced player like Cam Mooney.
“Leroy’s tackling and chasing was also something that I was impressed with, and I thought Alwyn Davey was good as well.
“It was also good to see Ricky Dyson get a fair bit of the ball. Although he probably wasn’t able to hurt the opposition as much as he has been able to over the pre-season, it was good to see him bounce back from last week.”
Geelong could seemingly do no wrong throughout the majority of the match. Fleet footwork, impeccable skills and a numerous options in front of goal made the Cats look near invinceable. Essendon looked in the game for the first 20 minutes of the match but late first quarter goals to Geelong set the tone for the remainder of the game.
With 14 individual goal-scorers for the game, the Cats goal tally was plentiful and Camporeale believed it was a key aspect of their game that allowed them to score such an impressive victory.
“They had a good spread of goal kickers which really helped them and it is something that I think we need to aspire to,” Camporeale said.
“To get done by almost 100 points wasn’t great but they showed us how to play counter attack football.
“Although we were shown up in a lot of areas, I think we need to really look at our skill level because it was one area where we were really exposed.”
Camporeale said that he and the rest of the coaching team will review the match in depth in preparation for the clash with arch-rivals Carlton at the MCG next Saturday night.
