Essendon is on the winners list for the first time this season, putting a week of heavy scrutiny behind it with a come-from-behind win against Port Adelaide at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night. The Bombers trailed at every break, but a four-goal final term in which young forward Nate Caddy and cult hero Sam Draper hit the scoreboard, gave the home side a 12-point win, 9.18 (72) to 8.12 (60), in front of a crowd of 25,114.
The visitors had their chances leading for most of the match, but couldn't manage to break away from the Bombers who hung in despite their inefficiency in front of goal on a night where they scored 18 behinds. Bombers fans would have been buoyed in the first five minutes of the game with their side coming out with an intensity not seen in their humiliating 10-goal loss to Adelaide last week.
Despite being well in the contest, they couldn't hit the scoreboard, and when the ball went down the Power's end it was a different story with spearhead Mitch Georgiades running hot with two goals and having six score involvements in the opening term. From there, the game turned into an arm wrestle, with only two goals scored in the second term in a quarter plagued by errors from both sides.
The teams kicked just one goal each for the term, the first coming through energetic forward Darcy Byrne-Jones at the two-minute mark, and the second through Bomber Jade Gresham in the final minute before half-time. For the 23 minutes in between those goals, the ball shifted from end-to-end like a tennis match, much to the frustration of the crowd.
Port's Brownlow medallist Ollie Wines came out after the main break and lifted, collecting 10 possessions and kicking a goal to steady his side in the third term. But his side couldn't break free from the Bombers who clung on, with goals through youngsters Archie Roberts and Jye Menzie.
Debutants Tom Cochrane and Saad El-Hawli, who both started as subs for their respective sides, came onto the ground to start the final term in an attempt to add a spark with the game still in the balance. And straight away, El-Hawli was involved, with a bursting run from half-back leading to Essendon's first goal for the term through Nic Martin. From there it never looked like Essendon was going to lose with Mason Redman, Caddy, and Draper all scoring to give the Bombers their first win for 2025.
With Elijah Tsastas missing the match with a broken hand, Essendon coach Brad Scott threw his veteran Dylan Shiel back into the middle. Shiel, who has been playing in defence for the first two rounds, looked right at home in arguably his best game for the season. The 32-year-old finished the night with 25 disposals and five clearances and was one of the Bombers' best.
In the first quarter, it looked as though Mitch Georgiades was going to tear the game apart with six disposals, three marks, two goals, and a goal assist. Adding to his bag of tricks, the 23-year-old took a massive hanger on the wing in a Virgin Australia Mark of the Year contender. To the Bombers' credit, their defensive unit was able to quell the influence of the Power star, who didn't contribute any further score to Port Adelaide's tally after quarter-time.
Essendon won the clearance count by +3, contested possession by +28, and inside 50s by +15, while also having seven more scoring shots. Despite conceding just 20 scoring shots to the Power, many goals came from untouched transition and undisciplined manning of key forwards, however, it was overall an improved performance.
Coach Brad Scott said post-game their output was "solid" after two weeks of criticism over the club's defence. "It was pretty solid. The criticism is warranted because the opposition kicked 160 points last week. I'm not interested in answering to the criticism," Scott said. "I focus on the facts all the time, whether you win, lose or draw, and what we've got to work on. I think the most pleasing thing is when you have a disappointing performance, you get to choose how you respond to it. You can capitulate and it's all too hard and the pressure is overwhelming, or you can respond. And I think that's a pretty good measure of character."
The Bombers also finally made the most of their attacking prowess after two losses to start the season, despite winning the inside 50 and clearance in both the Essendon and Adelaide matches. In Round 1, Jye Caldwell was the sole hard worker with 36 disposals and 10 clearances, while a 36-disposal, four-goal display from Zach Merrett carried the load in Round 2. Thursday night was a different story however, with multiple players contributing in the contest.
Dylan Shiel, Sam Durham, and Ben Hobbs were the top clearance contributors, while Zach Merrett, Durham, and Xavier Duursma were the top possession-getters. Shiel and Durham generated the most inside 50s. It was Essendon's best collective effort of the season.
Port Adelaide was evidently hampered by their lack of key forwards, as Todd Marshall (Achilles), Jack Lukosius (knee), and Ollie Lord (shoulder) sit on the sideline with injuries. Mitch Georgiades sparked a strong first half with two goals, two behinds, and seven score involvements, but as he quietened, the Power struggled to find opportunity inside 50.
Ken Hinkley said the next period without their talls will be a "challenge". "We're thin on our talls, but that's going to be a challenge for a little period of time, but we're okay. We can manufacture a way to get the points if we play better as a collective through the whole game."
Essendon's Saad El-Hawli's first touch of AFL football was the ignitor of Essendon's fourth-quarter surge, gathering a one-two possession off halfback before taking a running bounce, selling candy to Kane Farrell, and ultimately sparking the play that resulted in a goal. Port Adelaide's youngest crop of talent have also continued to seamlessly adapt to the top flight, with strong performances again by Joe Berry and Christian Moraes. Despite the loss, Berry was influential in the first half and recorded 15 disposals for the match, while Moraes was a ball-magnet, collecting 27 disposals for the match. Tom Cochrane was also influential as the sub, nearly nailing a boundary line drop punt.
In the end, Essendon emerged victorious, marking a significant turnaround after their rocky start to the 2025 season. The Bombers will look to build on this momentum as they prepare for their next challenge.
