Former Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson believes Essendon’s forward line looked all over the place in Saturday's clash against Geelong.
The Bombers kicked 72 points in the 66-point loss to Geelong, but that scoreline was flattered by the Cats taking their foot off the pedal late in the clash.
Essendon had kicked just 39 points to three quarter time. While there were significant concerns on their scoring potential after numerous forwards were missing from the Round 1 side, Bombers fans’ worst nightmares were being realised with their team simply not able to score.
“Unfortunately, the Essendon forward line has been quite dysfunctional today, they haven’t been able to get anything on their terms with this Geelong defensive scheme,” Sanderson commented on AFL Nation.
Key forward Peter Wright shouldered the hopes of Essendon kicking a big score, and contributed with seven possessions and two goals.
Despute being his club's second highest goal scorer, Sanderson believes the former Sun simply didn't offer enough.
"It can't be a pass mark today (for Wright), he hasn't been a lone wolf up there," Sanderson added.
“He (Wright) just needs a better support cast around him unfortunately."
First gamer Kaine Baldwin did his best to assist Wright, but it wasn’t enough to get the Bombers even close to a win as he went goalless.
However, fellow debutant Nick Martin was huge for the Bombers, his five goals and 27 possessions a clear standout.
“They just need a bit more firepower up there, they’re really missing Jake Stringer and that will probably be the story of the game for the Bombers is how are they going to find their goals,” Sanderson added.
Ben Rutten told AFL Nation pre-game that Stringer had suffered an interrupted pre-season over the past two months with a groin injury, leading to him missing Saturday’s clash.
He’s expected to return next week, while key forward Harrison Jones is aiming for a Round 4 return as he recovers from a foot injury.
Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti is still a fair way off returning to the AFL side.