""I suppose last year we ended further up the ladder and we ended up copping the two finals we played interstate,"" he said. Essendon has played three of its past four finals interstate with the other being played at The Dome.
Both clubs have proved that the MCG is one of their favourite venues to in 2004. The Bombers have won six out of eight while the Demons record of ten wins from 11 matches is the best in the competition.
In Round 13 this year it was the Demons who took the honours when they broke a five-year drought against Sheedy’s men. Despite that result Sheedy believes this week will be a different ball game.
""It’s history because we’ll have a better side coming up for this match. We’ll probably only have one or two players out of our best side. Adam McPhee won’t play and maybe one other,"" he said.
Dustin Fletcher and Dean Rioli did not play last time, while David Neitz and Chris Heffernan will be missing from the side that won by 26-points in the wet back in June. Neitz in particular will be a big blow for Melbourne - he kicked four goals and five behinds in the absence of Fletcher last time around.
With spring in the air, and scent of another finals campaign, Sheedy was philosophical when asked whether his side were favourites to win this weekend. ""That doesn’t matter, you’ve still got to play you’re best,"" he said.
""As long as we’ve got a good side out there that plays near their capabilities and talent, then we’ve got as good a chance as anybody.""
The Bombers will head into this finals series with a healthy blend of youth and experience, a fact Sheedy believes could decide the club’s fate in over the next month.
""We’ve probably got 12 of our 2000 side there, we’ve bought in some younger players and we have recruited one or two others. All in all maybe we might just get it right in the last week or two of the AFL season 2004,"" he said.
