Essendon Coach John Worsfold knows qualifying for the finals is only the first step and won’t satisfy a supporter base starved of finals success.

The Bombers have arrived in Sydney ahead of their Elimination Final against the Swans on Saturday.

Hundreds of fans were at Tullamarine on Friday to farewell the team and more than ten thousand Bombers supporters are expected to fill the stands of the SCG when the game gets underway.

“It means a lot for them, there is no doubt about that,” Worsfold said.

“They’ve been awesome, there is a lot of them heading up to Sydney for the game which is going to be brilliant.

“They want to see the boys do really well … they won’t be there after the game saying ‘oh well, it was a good year’.

“We’re up there to challenge ourselves to win this game.”

The Bombers won 12 home and away games throughout 2017 equalling their 2014 record, which also coincides with the Club’s last finals appearance.

Along the way, record membership and attendance landmarks have been achieved.

But regardless of how the next month unfolds, Worsfold said realising the Club's ultimate vision would require sustained hard work over a long period of time.

“It’s not so much a rebuild but it has been part of Our Comeback Story,” he said.     

“We’ve made some significant inroads into where we want to get to.

“We’ve got a long way to go for the overall vision of the Football Club – that is a four or five year goal.

“But we’ve made massive inroads into that this year.”

While nine Essendon players will get their first taste of finals football against the Swans, Worsfold has coached in 17 finals, including the 2006 Grand Final win.

“I’m not a rookie Coach going into finals, so you’re just aware not to overdo things,” he said.

“We haven’t changed too much, we’ve been preparing as normal, but we are also conscious that it’s a great achievement for the boys to have qualified to play finals.

“Our focus is now clearly on how we want to play.”