Essendon went into the grand final as underdogs to Carlton but led the Blues all day and recorded a 44-point win. The 'baby Bombers' had good assistance from some experienced Essendon campaigners - Tim Watson came out of retirement at the start of 1993 and Bomber Thompson captained the side. Mark Harvey, Darren Bewick, Michael Long, Paul Salmon and Gary O'Donnell were also key contributors to the 1993 premiership win. The team came together earlier today to celebrate the 10-year reunion at the first Dick Reynolds Club luncheon for the season.
The report card at the end of the 1993 season included – the Premiership Cup, the Fosters Cup, the McClelland Trophy, the Brownlow Medal, the Michael Tuck Medal and the Norm Smith Medal. No one predicted the amazing events of the year as a most wonderful batch of young players came on the scene and took the football world by storm. Over 800 people attended the event at the Grand Hyatt that honoured the 1993 premiership team.
One of Essendon’s favourite sons Tim Watson hosted the sell-out function. EFC chairman Graeme McMahon presented the retired members of the premiership team with their debut guernseys. The four players still on Essendon’s list – Hird, Mercuri, Fletcher and Misiti - were presented with theirs earlier in the year at the Chairman’s Season Launch.
Salmon, Hird, Long, Olarenshaw, Harvey and Thompson relived the highlights in a panel discussion. Bomber Thompson spoke fondly of the camaraderie between the players in 1993 and the belief Sheedy had in the team. He said that Sheedy has taught him a lot of things that he uses in his coaching career. ""He taught me to go out and have a go and you can win any game of footy at any time. Kevin has been such a fantastic person at continuing the strong list and the succession plan of leadership. When I started my footy career at Essendon there was great leaders around the club and no doubt when we played in 1993 that Mercs, Hirdy, Joe Misiti and even Longy to a point wanted to be like us. And no doubt the younger players on the list at Essendon now want to be like James Hird,"" Thompson said.
Sheedy insisted all his current Essendon players attend the ten year reunion today to see what can be achieved by a team. ""I changed training this week basically to bring all the players here to understand the feeling of what happens to teams if you have success and also what happens to the after life of that team. It was interesting listening to Rick Olarenshaw say that the 1993 premiership is the greatest thing he has ever done in his life. Not many players can say that or do say that. From an overall social point of view it is interesting to hear where the players are now and what they are doing,"" Sheedy said.
Sheedy sees similarities between the 1993 premiership team and his current team. “I think this team can be an exciting team but we don't seem to be able to get it together at the moment with regards to on the ground. It was probably the lowest amount of wins that I have ever ended up on top of the AFL ladder on as a coach - I think we had about 13 or 13 and a half. In 1981 and 1982 we won 16 games and we couldn't even get a double chance. It is just the way this football game goes sometimes. I think we have the right five or six young players on our list to build on over the next couple of years. From that point of view I think it is a bit the same,” Sheedy said.
The 1993 premiership victory was a marvelous achievement. Eleven of the premiership twenty were not yet 25-years old and seven were not 21. The year 1993 will go down in the records as one of Essendon’s greatest years in its long history. The reunion was capped off a great luncheon by singing the Bombers theme song up on stage.
Go to The Insider to read Matthew Lloyd's column on the 1993 premiership success.
