David King has praised the performance and example shown by Essendon’s leaders in yesterday’s win over Port Adelaide.
The Bombers bounced back from their disappointing defeat to the Western Bulldogs in Round 3 by beating the Power by 22 points at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
Two-time North Melbourne premiership player King was impressed by how captain Dyson Heppell performed and loved the game of Michael Hurley who led the backline brilliantly.
“This year in particular, I’ve never seen correlation between the captain’s performance and team success,” King said on SEN Mornings.
“If you want to know how your team’s going, check out the form of your captain. It’s never been more evident.
“The leadership yesterday – Dyson Heppell outstanding, Michael Hurley sensational – and then everyone can player lesser roles.”
King also touched on the role veteran Brendon Goddard played in the win over the previously unbeaten Port.
“Brendon Goddard – I think we’re all critical of Brendon when he has a poorer performance – he was awesome yesterday,” he added.
“His instruction, his preparedness to run, to put his body on the line. I think if you are a player at Essendon, you are going ‘OK, that’s the standard, that’s who we are, that’s the identity’.”
King also gave some insight into how John Worsfold set up his side from a tactical viewpoint to get the better of Ken Hinkley’s Power, highlighting the defensive roles of Hurley and Cale Hooker, after the latter returned to the back six.
“When you talk about the game structurally, when you have two pillars down back, it’s so much more settling for the other four,” he added further.
“When you’ve got Hooker and Hurley there, the other four (defenders) don’t have to be everything, they don’t have to intercept mark.
“They can just control their opponent and they can be creative off the back of their intercept work.
“This game was won by defensively Essendon not allowing Port Adelaide to switch the ball out of their back line.
“It was fantastic to watch and I thought tactically, we don’t give John a lot of credit for anything he does tactically, but that alone for me was the reason why they were so much better defensively.”
Essendon next take on Collingwood on ANZAC Day in nine days’ time on Wednesday, April 25.