Qualifying Final 1 1995, Essendon vs. West Coast

Game Statistics

ESSENDON.........2.4 5.6 11.8 11.8 (74)
WEST COAST.......4.2 6.5  7.7  8.7 (55)

Goals:

ESSENDON: Mercuri 4, Lloyd, Alessio 2, Somerville, O'Donnell, Hardwick 1.
WEST COAST: Gehrig 3, Heady, Kemp, Worsfold, Matera, McKenna 1.

Crowd:

36,102 at AFL Park, Waverley

Comment:

It was a jacket waving frenzy. And deservedly so. This win was possibly the best for the year and boy did we savour it. With about a minute to go, the crowd was swept up in what is now a tradition between the two clubs. Sheedy started it, the eagles continued it, and we cemented it. Ah, how sweet it is! Well, where the hell do I start? I've got so much to say about the game, so sit back, relax and bask in the glory of a great victory.

I guess as good a place to start as any is the pre-match warm up (also, I've included a reserves report at the request of many fans at the end of the match review). Yes, Sheedy did it again. Twenty-two men ran out onto the ground before the game. Twenty-two completed the pre-match warm-up. Four men sat on the bench. After the game Sheedy explained this by saying that Salmon had a recurrence of his neck injury in the rooms before the game, and he was unsure of his fitness, so Salmon was actually taking a fitness test during the pre-match warm up. Calthorpe, who was not going to play, and Grenvold was taking his place in the side also took part in the warm up. As it turned out, Salmon played, along with Grenvold, which left Calthorpe (who was injured) out of the side. Not knowing this story at the game, it looked like another of Sheedy's infamous tactics used against the Eagles (like the day he tied down the windsock at Windy Hill). It was certainly a befitting start to a final of this magnitude.

When the game started, Sheedy's moves continued. He started Gavin Wanganeen on Fraser Gehrig. Gehrig is 15cm taller than Gavin, and it seemed like one of the greatest mismatches of all times. When play started, we started with a burst. Mercuri received a free kick and put our first goal on the board within three minutes. Then at about the five minute mark, one of the best plays Essendon has done for the year took place. Jimmy Hird grabbed the ball near the boundary about forty metres from goal, dodged his opponent, handballed almost blindly over his head to the running Mercuri, who kicked the goal from about forty metres out. But unfortunately that was about it for the Dons contribution to the first quarter scoring. After that the Eagles kicked the next four for the quarter, and it seemed the intense enthusiasm that we had in the first seven or eight minutes was gone.

The second quarter scary indeed. We kicked the first, but then the Eagles went on another rampage. They kicked away and it seemed that we were in trouble. But then we managed to save face towards the end of the quarter, to go into half time only five points down. Having been to the Richmond v. North Melbourne game last night, I turned to my father and said that this game is identical to that one. North were the more skilled team, but Richmond had the emotion to keep them in the game. We unanimously hoped that this game would not go the same way.

Then it happened. The third quarter was one of the best for the year. A number of moves were made, and there was a general lift all over the ground. One of the most important moves was that of Barry Young onto Gehrig. Young was still 12cm shorter than Gehrig, but his intensity was unsurpassed. Not only did he manage to get a fist on nearly every ball that went Gehrig's way, he had numerous possessions running off the backline and setting up forward attacks. In my opinion he was one of the best players on the ground. Another defensive player who was superb was Ryan O'Connor. He too had a large opponent in Jason Ball, but he threw himself at every ball, got in front of his opponent, and generally ran himself into the ground. In a word, he was fantastic. Apparently the only reason he was picked to play this week was the tremendous effort he put into training on Thursday night. And that was reflected in the effort he put into the game today. There were winners all over the defensive line. Bomber Thompson was possibly the best player for Essendon in the first half, and remained a winner throughout the second half. His return to form has been fantastic, this being his second good game in a row. Dustin Fletcher also had another great game. For the second running he played very well, and all those players combined to stop all Eagles attacks in the third term. The players left the ground at three quarter time to a standing ovation.

At one stage in the third quarter, the bench read: Salmon, Denham and Harvey. The immense talent there was testimony to the work that the players were doing on the field. The three players returning from injury, O'Connor, Mercuri and Long were all superb. I've already mentioned O'Connor's game, but I must mention Mercuri's game. He kicked our first three goals (the second of which was amazing, as I stated earlier) and was a winner on the forward line for the whole game. For a player who was supposedly only a 70% chance to play, he did brilliantly.

The last quarter really showed that Essendon is a team capable of locking a game up. We did not even score a point, but managed to run out winners by nineteen points. Players all over the ground were exhausted (especially guys like Ryan O'Connor), but each managed to keep putting in and didn't allow the Eagles players to get away at any stage.

Other players which must be given a mention are Ben Doolan and Matthew Lloyd. Doolan played the whole game on Chris Mainwaring. And he relished it. He played a great game last week, and this week continued the form. He went in very hard into the packs, and out-muscled Mainwaring for the whole game. Matthew Lloyd played in only his fourth game, and it was a final. For many players this would be too much, for most seventeen year olds it would be too much. But Lloyd handled it very well. He kicked a few goals himself, and had a hand in many others. His marking was a feature of the game, and he will definitely be one of the champions at Essendon in years to come.

In all, the game was definitely one of the best performances for the year. It is amazing what a difference the finals makes to some players. In the last two weeks we have been thrashed, but the confidence shown by so many players this week was inspiring. It was also evident in the crowd. Essendon the underdog came out and really fired up the supporters. People all over the ground could feel the excitement of the finals. And it was all summed up in those last few minutes in the jacket waving frenzy!

To the reserves. A great win by our reserves team this week against St Kilda. They were down at three quarter time, but managed to run out winners by about five goals (sorry, I don't have the exact score with me). Their last quarter performance was incredible, much like the seniors third term. Better players included Scott Lucas (who kicked a few goals and marked strongly), Peter Cransberg (who was unlucky to be dropped this week, and he kicked a huge torpedo punt from about sixty metres in the final quarter), Mark Pitura (a great supplementary list player, who always gathers heaps of possessions in the reserves, and may be added to the team list next) and Julian Kirzner kicked a few more goals this week. They will play either North Melbourne or Footscray next week depending on the outcome of the Sydney v. Collingwood game. After the terrific last quarter the team gathered in a circle and sang the club song while still on the ground, which really thrilled the crowd. Their win is also good for the seniors, as it gives them something to fall back on for at least another week. - Brad

Votes:

 Well, I really couldn't separate about five players today, and I've decided I won't bother, so I've given five players three votes this week. Any fans who saw the game can email me their votes and I'll tally them up and give a supporters vote update later in the week.

3 - Barry Young
A superb game by Barry, who really ran off Gehrig who was the problem player early. Possibly the best game I've seen Barry Play.

3 - Ryan O'Connor
An inspired game by the Rock. He ran so hard all day and really deserved the dominance that he experienced across the half back line.

3 - Mark Mercuri
Set up the early attacks for the Dons, and continued to be dominant for the whole game.

3 - Gary O'Donnell
Mr Reliable was supreme again, with a huge amount of possessions, and each one used to great effect. A highlight was his goal from about sixty metres out that just rolled over the line.

3 - James Hird
Always trying his hardest, James Hird was runner all day. He could be seen all over the ground, up on the half back line and then up on the forward line.

A special mention must go to Bomber Thompson and Ben Doolan, who were very unlucky not to receive votes.

The Statistics for the Qualifying Final:


Possessions    Kicks          Handballs      Marks         
O'DONNELL   31 O'DONNELL   24 DOOLAN      13 HIRD         9
LONG        27 LONG        16 HIRD        12 O'DONNELL    8
MERCURI     25 MERCURI     15 LONG        11 MERCURI      8
HIRD        24 HIRD        12 MERCURI     10 LLOYD        8
YOUNG       21 YOUNG       12 OLARENSHAW   9 LONG         7
DOOLAN      20 THOMPSON    11 YOUNG        9 SOMERVILLE   6
THOMPSON    19 HARDWICK    11 WANGANEEN    8 HARDWICK     5
OLARENSHAW  18 PRIOR       10 THOMPSON     8 ALESSIO      5
HARDWICK    16 GRENVOLD    10 O'DONNELL    7 YOUNG        5
O'CONNOR    16 ALESSIO      9 O'CONNOR     7 DOOLAN       4

Next Week:

The 2nd Semi Final against Richmond. Could be one of the matches of the finals series, with the fanatical Richmond fans, and the masses of red and black. To be played at the MCG on Saturday, I would expect around 80,000 to 90,000 at the game (depending, of course, on the weather). After seeing the Richmond game and our game, I think we can be quietly confident of victory here. Richmond really lack players at both ends of the ground, and I couldn't see them holding our forwards, or likewise, their forwards excelling against our backs. For them to win, they'd have to push us in the mid-field, but with guys like Long, O'Donnell and Mercuri in good form, I think they could have problems. The good news is that the Dons will have an almost full list from which to pick the team next week, with Symons, Misiti and Calthorpe (who was replaced in the selected side this week by Grenvold) all expected to be fit. That will mean only Bewick and Cockatoo-Collins (who will have a fitness test on his hamstring, but is doubtful) not be available for selection. Some of the players came of nursing injuries after the Eagles game, but they are all believed to be right for next week (including O'Connor and Young who both cramped up towards the end of the game). It looks like we've got a very good chance to make it to the Preliminary Final this year, where we would meet Geelong.
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