Essendon coach John Worsfold says his side copped a football lesson from West Coast in Thursday night’s 35-point AFL loss at Optus Stadium.
The Bombers led by 10 points late in the first quarter, but were blown off the park from that point on in the 14.22 (106) to 11.5 (71) result.
West Coast tallied 20 straight inside 50s either side of quarter time, and would have beaten Essendon by more than 70 points if not for some shonky goalkicking.
The final inside 50m count read 64-40 in favour of West Coast, with Essendon struggling to even clear the ball from defence for large parts of the match.
Worsfold said he was particularly concerned by the second quarter, when West Coast won the inside 50m count 23-4.
“I was very concerned about it. I was really disappointed with the way we coped with the pressure they bought,” Worsfold said.
“They are an awesome footy team. We got a lesson from them in that regard and we didn’t cope well with it.
“There is no doubt across the board we were a little bit off, maybe a fair bit off, playing he way we wanted to play tonight.
“That might be the opposition’s pressure and all credit to them, but it may be something about our preparation. I’m not really sure. We’ll work through that.”
The result left Essendon at 6-7 and facing a battle to make the finals.
If Thursday’s loss wasn’t bad enough, Essendon are sweating on injuries and potential suspensions.
Ruckman Tom Bellchambers could be in strife for his high bump on Luke Shuey, while Mason Redman was reported for his back heel to the ribs of Oscar Allen.
Matt Guelfi was sent to hospital for scans on his ribs and lung after crashing into the boundary fence following a shove from Jeremy McGovern.
The Bombers are hopeful Guelfi will be cleared to fly back to Melbourne on Friday.
Orazio Fantasia went goalless from just six disposals in a quiet display, and Worsfold revealed after the match that the forward was battling soreness.
“It’s soreness he’s had for a while,” Worsfold said.
“We’re trying to get on top of it while he is still holding up, but we’ll assess how he has pulled up after this game.”
Worsfold said Jake Stringer, who missed Thursday’s loss with an ankle injury, is no certainty to return for next week’s clash with GWS.
“We’re rapt that he’s not out for the long term,” Worsfold said.
“But when he’s able to train flat out – he’s a bit of an unknown. It could be this week, but he may not be up for the game.”