Essendon’s final hopes took a major blow on Saturday night – and you feel the blow was largely self-inflicted.
The Bombers squandered a golden opportunity to bury some demons and keep their September hopes alive with a stinging one-point loss to Gold Coast at Marvel Stadium.
It was the third time in three seasons that Essendon had lost a game via a kick after the siren, following Magpie Jamie Elliott’s performance in 2022 and Power defender Dan Houston’s epic bomb last year.
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What added salt to the wound for the Bombers was the fact that they had victory well within their grasp in the final quarter. They had control and momentum and scored the goals, but a devilish 1.9 prevented them from closing the door on the Suns.
And after scoring a spectacular tackle mark with 20 seconds left, Sun Mac made Andrew Essendon pay the heaviest price with a goal after the siren.
Dimma crashes Mac’s live TV interview | 01:05
The Bombers had more in the fifties, but their terrible goal scoring, especially in the crucial final quarter, got them out of trouble, with Jake Stringer (0.3) and Sam Draper (0.2) the main culprits after three-quarter time for the Bombers.
In ugly scenes, Essendon fans threw drinks bottles on the ground after Andrew kicked the match winner.
“1.9 against Essendon in the last quarter – I don’t know if I’ve seen a capitulation like that,” Kangaroo David King told Fox Footy after the match.
“They just couldn’t take their chances… They had countless chances. They definitely had them on the rack.
‘And you know what? That’s what Brad Scott has been talking about: dealing with the pressure of the moment, the pressure of these types of games – and they haven’t been ready for that in the last six to eight weeks.
Wild scenes! Mac jags winner after siren | 00:55
“Essendon should have won this match by four to five goals, but in the end they didn’t take their chances, they couldn’t handle the pressure.”
Three-time premiership Tiger Jack Riewoldt added: “The Essendon advantage has really gone for that football club.”
— with NCA NewsWire
