eth-dog
Tier 1 WW Player
Observations
West Coast: They put in a very competitive effort against Hawthorn, with Kennedy firing on all cylinders in the forward 50, but on the same token Hawthorn's defensive pressure was at it's lowest point since the start of 2012. The Eagles also were shocking defensively, there were wide open spaces for the Hawthorn forwards to run into, and as such Jarryd Roughead kicked 5, as did Jack Gunston
Essendon: Put in a clinical performance against Gold Coast and did what they needed to do. Brendan Goddard starred for the bombers, and Father-Son recruit Joe Daniher showed Essendon fans what the future was like with his body work, marking the football at it's highest point and kicking 3 goals
Previous encounters: Essendon 2-3 West Coast
Past 5 matches
Essendon: 3 W, 2 L
West Coast: 3 W, 2 L
sportsbet odds <will insert when available>
West Coast: $1.93
Essendon: $1.80
Possible sides
Essendon vs West Coast
B: Hooker - Carlisle - Baguley
F: Naitanui - Kennedy - LeCras
HB: Winderlich - Hurley - Hibberd
HF: Cripps - Darling - Masten
C: Stanton - Watson - Heppell
C: Shuey - S Selwood - Rosa
HF: Zaharakis - Ryder - Crameri
HB: Waters - MacKenzie - Sheppard
F: Merrett - Daniher - Dell'Olio
B: Glass - Brown - Wilson
R: Bellchambers - Hocking - Goddard
R: Cox - Priddis - Kerr
I: Howlett - Myers - Melksham
I: Gaff - Dalziell - Brennan
S: Dempsey
S: Hutchings
Essendon forward line vs West Coast defence defence
Essendon's forward line finally found some function against Gold Coast with Stewart Crameri working up onto the wings and burning his opponents on the way back, Hurley leading from 30 out before injuring his wrist again. He'll probably be replaced by ruckman Tom Bellchambers/Paddy Ryder combination. Cory Dell'Olio looks likely for his first start for the year after two disappointing games by Alwyn Davey. West Coast's defence has been known to leak goals, but are excellent at creating chances out of defence with Schofield, Hurn and Waters all very good users out of defence.
midfield battle (rucks included)
Big battle in here, West Coast have been poor in the middle all year and look slow through there with Kerr losing his pace, Gaff being tagged out of games and they just need some speed through there. Essendon's midfield is looking ominous with Watson hitting form again, as well as Goddard, Stanton, Zaharakis and Myers starting to look very dangerous for the dons. The ruck battle will also be fantastic to watch, Naitanui and Ryder the athletic freaks they are, plus Bellchambers and Cox going head to head will be interesting
West Coast forward line vs Essendon defence
West Coast have one of the best forward line's in the AFL if you look at the teamsheet. JJ Kennedy is 2nd in the Coleman, LeCras can kick 50+ in a year, Hill is as talented as they come and Jack Darling is a super player. Essendon's defence however, is also very strong. Hibberd and Carlisle look likely candidates for being All Australian's, squad members at least, Hooker plays well on the 2nd key forward, Fletcher is, well, Fletcher and Baguley has been important this season
X-Factor player
Brad Sheppard is the X-Factor this week, he was a high draft pick and undoubtedly has talent, he can run all day, has a good leg on him and could possibly break the game open when he's on. He is one of the younger brigade of the Eagles that needs to step up for this proud club
Key stats for each side
Essendon:
West Coast are in poor form, and Essendon in some very good form, as well as the bye against the 6 day break so Essendon by 33
West Coast: They put in a very competitive effort against Hawthorn, with Kennedy firing on all cylinders in the forward 50, but on the same token Hawthorn's defensive pressure was at it's lowest point since the start of 2012. The Eagles also were shocking defensively, there were wide open spaces for the Hawthorn forwards to run into, and as such Jarryd Roughead kicked 5, as did Jack Gunston
Essendon: Put in a clinical performance against Gold Coast and did what they needed to do. Brendan Goddard starred for the bombers, and Father-Son recruit Joe Daniher showed Essendon fans what the future was like with his body work, marking the football at it's highest point and kicking 3 goals
Previous encounters: Essendon 2-3 West Coast
Past 5 matches
Essendon: 3 W, 2 L
West Coast: 3 W, 2 L
sportsbet odds <will insert when available>
West Coast: $1.93
Essendon: $1.80
Possible sides
Essendon vs West Coast
B: Hooker - Carlisle - Baguley
F: Naitanui - Kennedy - LeCras
HB: Winderlich - Hurley - Hibberd
HF: Cripps - Darling - Masten
C: Stanton - Watson - Heppell
C: Shuey - S Selwood - Rosa
HF: Zaharakis - Ryder - Crameri
HB: Waters - MacKenzie - Sheppard
F: Merrett - Daniher - Dell'Olio
B: Glass - Brown - Wilson
R: Bellchambers - Hocking - Goddard
R: Cox - Priddis - Kerr
I: Howlett - Myers - Melksham
I: Gaff - Dalziell - Brennan
S: Dempsey
S: Hutchings
Essendon forward line vs West Coast defence defence
Essendon's forward line finally found some function against Gold Coast with Stewart Crameri working up onto the wings and burning his opponents on the way back, Hurley leading from 30 out before injuring his wrist again. He'll probably be replaced by ruckman Tom Bellchambers/Paddy Ryder combination. Cory Dell'Olio looks likely for his first start for the year after two disappointing games by Alwyn Davey. West Coast's defence has been known to leak goals, but are excellent at creating chances out of defence with Schofield, Hurn and Waters all very good users out of defence.
midfield battle (rucks included)
Big battle in here, West Coast have been poor in the middle all year and look slow through there with Kerr losing his pace, Gaff being tagged out of games and they just need some speed through there. Essendon's midfield is looking ominous with Watson hitting form again, as well as Goddard, Stanton, Zaharakis and Myers starting to look very dangerous for the dons. The ruck battle will also be fantastic to watch, Naitanui and Ryder the athletic freaks they are, plus Bellchambers and Cox going head to head will be interesting
West Coast forward line vs Essendon defence
West Coast have one of the best forward line's in the AFL if you look at the teamsheet. JJ Kennedy is 2nd in the Coleman, LeCras can kick 50+ in a year, Hill is as talented as they come and Jack Darling is a super player. Essendon's defence however, is also very strong. Hibberd and Carlisle look likely candidates for being All Australian's, squad members at least, Hooker plays well on the 2nd key forward, Fletcher is, well, Fletcher and Baguley has been important this season
X-Factor player
Brad Sheppard is the X-Factor this week, he was a high draft pick and undoubtedly has talent, he can run all day, has a good leg on him and could possibly break the game open when he's on. He is one of the younger brigade of the Eagles that needs to step up for this proud club
Key stats for each side
Essendon:
- Marks I50. Essendon need to fix this area, for the amount of inside 50's they have they don't convert enough
- Tackles. Essendon's pressure has gone down a notch for the past few weeks and they need to fix that up
- Marks Inside 50. When a side has Darling, Kennedy and either Cox or Naitanui in the forward line you expect to see a lot of marks taken
- Clearances. West Coast are good at clearing the ball from the stoppages and will want to maintain that dominance
West Coast are in poor form, and Essendon in some very good form, as well as the bye against the 6 day break so Essendon by 33
