""I don't want to waste what we have put together in the second half of the season. All the players are really positive and looking forward to Friday night. We don't want to finish up in the first week of the finals.""
After the loss to Collingwood on Friday night, Essendon knew they would be travelling in the first week of finals. However, it wasn’t until Port Adelaide defeated Adelaide yesterday afternoon, that Essendon’s finals fate was decided. Lloyd said it was an anxious wait over the weekend to find out what team they would face in the first week of finals. “I knew we would finish seventh or eighth and would be travelling whether it would be Sydney, Adelaide or Perth. I am confident that we are building a different type of side at the moment, which is going to be a good one. I have played in some big finals and for some reason I am really excited about Friday night and what lays ahead for us,"" the dual Coleman medallist said.
Despite Essendon’s poor interstate record in recent years, it will take confidence into the match against Fremantle having beaten them quite convincingly two weeks ago. Both Dustin Fletcher and Sean Wellman missed the Fremantle game, so the team will be further strenghtened with their inclusion.""I think a lot of sides from the weekend are going into the finals with a few injuries. We are one of the lucky sides who will go in full strength, with guys pushing up from the seconds, who are all raring to get a game this week,” Lloyd said.
Lloyd is especially looking forward to this year’s finals series, considering a bad concussion ended his finals campaign last season. ""I just can't wait until Friday night. The one final I played last year lasted 10 minutes and it was all over for me. Everyone is pumped for the match against Fremantle and has put Friday night behind us.""
