"This model gives them the best chance to win finals" - David King hails Essendon, highlights major improvement following GWS Giants victory
North Melbourne premiership player David King lauded the Essendon Bombers for their victory against the Greater Western Sydney Giants in Round 9 of the 2024 AFL season. The Bombers emerged victorious with a score of 82-62.
The Bombers been playing well this season and maintained their form in Saturday's match against the Giants. Following the match, David King spoke about the team. He was impressed with the club's form this season and appreciated them, saying (via AFL.com):
“Finally, this version of Essendon over the last 4-5 weeks is the most defensively-sound version of Essendon I’ve seen for a long, long time. You have to give credit to the coaching staff, the playing unit; they’ve clearly been working through some teething issues over the first month of the season.”
In addition to his statement, King admitted that if the Bombers continued to perform similarly, they would easily win the finals. He said:
“To me, this model gives them the best chance to win finals, to win a final firstly - get that monkey off the back - and then get rolling. We all know the 7,000 days-plus that they’ve gone without winning a final.”
The Bombers have been in good form this season. Last week, they defeated West Coast by six points and then went on to win against GWS Giants.
Essendon started the season with a resounding victory over Hawthorn by 107-83. However, they faced difficulties in a match against Sydney in Round 2 when the latter defeated them by 131-101. In the next round, the Bombers won against St. Kilda but lost against Port Adelaide in Round 4.
In Round 5, they played against the Western Bulldogs and won by 96-67, followed by their three-point win against Adelaide in Round 6. They played out a draw against Collingwood before winning the Round 8 match against West Coast.
A quick recap of Essendon vs GWS Giants
The Bombers played against the GWS Giants on Saturday, May 11. The match began with the Giants taking the lead with their first goal. At the end of the first quarter, the GWS Giants scored 24 points while their rivals settled for a score of 20. The Giants extended their lead by 10 points after the second quarter.
However, the Bombers played fairly well in the third and scored five goals, which helped them take the lead, 67-61. The final quarter started with the Bombers making three back-to-back goals, further extending their lead. At the end of the match, Essendon scored 88 points while the Giants settled for 75.