What was your assessment of the game?

We thought the way Essendon play they’re so dangerous the way they get some overlap, but if you stop it you can hurt them the other way and I think we did that enough in the first half. The last three goals before half-time, you could sense that they had energy and our first 10 minutes of the second quarter was really pleasing. Our forward line is a bit of a makeshift forward line at the moment. We were pretty efficient out of the middle. Nic again and our mids gave us some supply, but that three minutes just before half-time was where the game changed. They got their tails up and you could sense that it was going to be a difficult second half. I wasn’t surprised that it was a bit of an arm wrestle in the second half and we lost a lot of numbers statistically. We converted when we needed to and I thought the maturity of some of our players stood up, especially down back.

Is ‘mayhem (football)’ the biggest challenge to stop for you?

That’s a fair call. You’ve got to win the clearances, you’ve got to defend behind your clearances and if that gets taken away from you from someone like Essendon it’s difficult to stop. I thought the midfield battle we lost and field position in the last half. I think we had … 32 inside 50s. I don’t think we played poorly, I just think it was two pretty desperate sides trying to play their own brand and both trying to qualify for finals. 

Did (Luke) Shuey do a hamstring?

I think so. Regardless it was going to be a couple of weeks…

So the decision for him to come back on, because at three quarter time he (started on the bench)

At three quarter time he started on the bench and came out and ran around, but he didn’t do any more damage. He is probably going to miss a couple of weeks, so that probably takes us until the end of the season. It’s just the way it is.

Do you get to welcome back anyone else for the Bulldogs (game)?

Josh Kennedy will be a handy inclusion. Jakey Waterman and Jack Petruccelle might be around and about. Yeo is still a couple of weeks away. We’ve got a few injuries like everyone. It was our third game in nine days and we looked tired, but Essendon looked tired too. They were a solider down too. It’s a battle of the fittest at the moment and we’ve got a game in five days against the Doggies. We’ll back up and have a swing at them.

You said Shuey would have missed the same (time) anyway. Did he go back out to try and help win the game knowing that he’d already done some damage?

I think so. It was one of those ones where sometimes you react to a hamstring saying ‘I can go at 80 per cent’. That was enough for us. It got pretty tight there (the game) and he wasn’t going to play for a couple of weeks anyway.

What were your thoughts on Liam Ryan’s efforts?

I’m really proud. Liam’s really stood up; he’s one of our best players. I thought Jack Darling led really well; he’s a really strong, up-and-coming leader. He’s worked really hard on his leadership and he led from the front along with Liam’s performance. And then (Lewis) Jetta went forward for a bit and I think he had three shots. There’s something to look at there. Bailey Williams and Oscar Allen continue their growth, Xavier O’Neill played forward. So it was bit of an eclectic group. Hutch (Mark Hutchings) was there as well. We just couldn’t get it in there, so the efficiency of the front half was pleasing but the supply wasn’t.

With Shuey and the decision to come back on … it was an important stage of the game with Essendon in the middle of the ground looking to go back inside 50. As a captain to want to come back on the ground and do that, can you talk a bit about that moment?

I can’t remember the moment, but he’s been really good. It’s his first year as captain and he wants to do the right things by the club. He represents us really well and he’s heart and soul. For us, as many as those players we can get in our club (is great). They play for the right reason, they play for the club and their family and they play with spirit. I think we’ve got plenty of those.