Campbell Brown says Essendon fans should be stoked with how their club has performed in 2023.
Heading into the year under new coach Brad Scott and all sorts of changes at board level, the Bombers are now preparing for a late finals surge in the next few weeks.
They currently sit outside of the top eight on percentage, but with games against GWS and Collingwood coming up, they've given themselves a chance to qualify for finals.
It’s unlikely, but they’ve got a chance.
Like almost every club, the Bombers have suffered some significant injury grief this year, with a number of their star players spending significant time on the sidelines.
Players like Peter Wright, Will Setterfield, Sam Draper and Jake Stringer have had frustrating years and Brown says it’s a credit to the Bombers to have claimed 11 wins so far this year, a massive improvement from their seven-win season in 2022.
“I think they’ve had a fantastic season,” Brown said on SEN Breakfast.
“They’ve won 11 games and still have a couple more to play, you would’ve absolutely signed off on that at the start of the season.
“The big knock on Essendon over the last few years has been their lack of defensive accountability and their lack of pressure on the ball carrier, they are rated one of the worst in the competition for pressure acts and they’ve significantly improved that this year.
“Nick Cox, who I think is a really good young player, has only played four games this year and Harry Jones has only played five, they’re some of their better youngsters and they haven’t been on able to get on the park.
“One of their most important players is Sam Draper with his physicality and he hasn’t played since Round 13.
“I think they’ve had a terrific year, their best is very good, I commentated the Essendon versus Adelaide game at Marvel Stadium and that was as good a performance as they’ve put together this year and they were brilliant.
“They’ve also done it without Peter Wright for the first half of the year.
“They’d be disappointed if they don’t make the eight because that’s what you play for, but certainly going forward, they’ll only be better.”
Draper and Stringer are both expected to play this weekend against the 10th-placed Giants with the ninth-placed Dons requiring victory to keep their finals hopes well and truly alive.