Improving a hell of a lot’: Bombers midfielders challenged to add scoring firepower
By Michael Gleeson
March 11, 2022 — 11.30am
Essendon are putting the acid on their midfield to hit the scoreboard and make the Bombers a more threatening attack.
As coaches balance the return of Dylan Shiel and Jye Caldwell with the need to avoid disrupting Darcy Parish, who had a breakout season last year after relishing more time in the middle with others out through injury, captain Dyson Heppell said there would be a heavier rotation of all midfielders through the forward line.
Essendon captain Dyson Heppell says the Bombers’ midfield want to broaden their scoring strength.CREDIT:EDDIE JIM
The need for more threats in attack is acute with Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti outuntil about mid-season. Without their best small forward, the Bombers are looking for more avenues to goal.
“In terms of goalkickers, we are hoping to see more mids goals. We have a lot of unbelievable midfielders on the list that will have to play a number of different roles and that will include up forward to see if we can get a few snags out of them,” Heppell said.
“No doubt Shiel and Caldwell coming back in might [change] that balance and that versatility. Darc might have to spend a bit more time forward as well, which he has embraced really well, developing and learning his craft there over the pre-season. We will see a bit of a mixed bag of guys getting through there. I think that works really well for us.
“Big Pete [Wright] has put in a massive body of work and he has some real confidence in himself.
“‘Walla’ [McDonald-Tipungwuti] adds an enormous amount to our side, but we have seen the development of players. Archie Perkins is coming on, Dev Smith has had a massive pre-season - for the first time in a long time his body is really healthy. Matt Guelfi, these type of guys are trying to not fill the void but are improving a hell of a lot, so we will spread it across the board.”
The issues McDonald-Tipungwuti has been going through off the field, that have drawn him away from football, are complex. Heppell said all he and others could do was offer support, in whatever form that took.
McDonald-Tipungwuti is back training, but in terms of his physical fitness after such a long lay-off he is coming from a long way back.
“You just be someone there he can talk to, just be an enormous support for him as much as we possibly can, and he just knows that he has got our support and we can trust that he will do whatever he needs to get himself in a space to be ready to go again,” Heppell said.
Darcy Parish had a breakout season for Essendon last year.CREDIT:GETTY IMAGES
“He seems really happy around the club and he is a bubbly character. It’s just great seeing him smiling and enjoying his footy.”
Essendon players had also watched on almost in a sense of despair last year at popular teammate Michael Hurley’s health battles as he battled a serious infection and worked painstakingly to rebuild his fitness.
A hip infection last February hospitalised Hurley at length and meant he did not play a game last year. Doctors believe the infection originated from a blister in his foot.
Earlier this year the whole team was caught on video spontaneously cheering and screaming when they saw Hurley quietly appear on the training track to run laps for the first time in a long time.
“Whenever it happens and he gets back it would be just unbelievable to see him get out there again,” Heppell said.
“He is in a really healthy space. Mentally he is going well, he is helping out with some coaching with the VFL boys, so he is putting in the work, big Mick, and it would be unbelievable to see him have another crack at it.
“We had a good feel for what was going on with his illness and it was horrible. You know he is the heart and soul of the club, big Mick, so it gets to you when you see guys like that going down. Just his fight and his optimism and his character helped him get through that period and he has a lot of close guys at the footy club that he leant on as well. He has done unbelievably well to get to where he is now.”
Essendon exceeded expectations with their rapid rise to make finals last year, largely on the back of an injection of youth and a tweaked game plan in Ben Rutten’s first year as solo senior coach.
Clubs typically want to avoid buying into outside expectations. Heppell admitted that managing expectations is a difficult thing as improvement is rarely linear, so replicating what they did last year and improving on it is difficult, even if that is the plan and hope. Balancing that awareness of a non-linear path with being seen to talk down excitement is awkward.
“Expectations mean nothing really and that’s the way we approached it last year when no one expected anything of us,” Heppell said.
“It was ‘don’t worry about the external noise’ but internally, we had a self-belief in where we were heading as a unit and the game plan the coaches had put in place and knew it wasn’t going to be perfect, but I think the development we showed last year leading into this year with a lot of optimism and excitement around it but also not putting expectations on ourselves.
“You try and block out the external noise as much as you can, but also it’s great to feed off the hype of fans and members who are right behind us which we really love.”
Keep laughing Sarah.
So endearing.
Who does she barrack for?
The Swans
She’s an absolute train wreck.
I don’t think we are fit enough
Physically, mentally or both?
Physically
Mentally aswell but young sides do have lapses
WE’RE GONNA
As far as the mental side of things goes, if you’re not ready to run through brick walls come round 1 then the club has failed. And we were miles off it last week.
How were we so unprepared mentally? A very complicated notion. Would love to hear people’s thoughts.
Not sure the timeline but from the Rish and Rath podcast, Parish had a car crash on the Friday? and Shiel has broken down car on the way to G?.
Both being car related maybe their minds are a little bit elsewhere and conversation grows the group. If your off just a little bit it can be drastic on the scoreboard.
As both Lyon & Buckley have said, possibly played the game in their heads too much & too often before the real thing.*
*Not a popular notion on here. But it might have more credence if we are more switched on, and less flat, today.
I think we will be 2 wins & 9 losses after 11 rounds. Simply put, we do not have a functioning forward line. The disconnect between the midfield and the forward line is a major problem. Unless things change majorly, sides are going to treat Essendon as an easy kill. We also must not persist with players who are out of form.
I was hopeful over the summer, that the guys would fix this problem, but it proved to be a false dawn. It could be we are nowhere as good as we think we are. Not the talent on the list perhaps. Take Ham for example. He has done nothing over the pre season to warrant a game, yet he gets one anyway. Lack of depth? Poor development?
I was alot happier a few hours ago thinking stuff like choosing ham over tex etc were our main issues.
Spoon
Distinct possibility. Coin flip between us and Adelaide
Spoon is the reward for a 150 year old club lols
Yeap
Look at the Hawks go against a top 4 club
Ours should just fold done with them