SEN host Dwayne Russell rated Essendon’s 107-83 win over Hawthorn as the best victory of Round 1.
While the Dons weren’t the most impressive side to take the park across the weekend, Russell had their win as the best given the heat they would have copped if they lost.
Russell had the Bombers ranked number one on his pressure meter in the lead-up to the round and he was glad to see them prevail and rise to meet those expectations against a team they should be beating.
“Going through my best wins of the weekend, number one was Essendon (over Hawthorn),” Russell said on SEN Afternoons.
“They just had to win that game, I didn't care how. They were my number one on the pressure meter last Thursday. The biggest fallout of any loss on the weekend would have been if Essendon lost to Hawthorn.
“Sure, it wasn't as impressive a win as some of the other wins on the weekend, but they live to fight another day.”
While the heat was on Essendon in ahead of Round 1, Russell thinks that the victory has given them some early-season grace.
With games against Sydney at the SCG and St Kilda at Marvel Stadium in the next fortnight, Russell doesn’t think that the Dons are under any real pressure to produce a result in either one of those games.
“Next, they’ve got Sydney at the SCG, arguably the toughest task in footy right now,” Russell said.
“You’ve got to win on your home deck and Sydney at the SCG is the hardest home deck to win on.
“After that, they've got another 50-50 maybe against St Kilda at Marvel Stadium.
“So, we'll find out who is better, Essendon or St Kilda in a couple of weeks.
“But Essendon's was my number one best win of the weekend.”
With Essendon his top pick, Russell also ranked his five other best wins of the round.
Check out Dwayne Russell’s six best wins across Round 1 below.
1 - Essendon def Hawthorn
2 - Melbourne def Western Bulldogs
3 - Fremantle def Brisbane
4 – Collingwood def by Sydney
5 - Geelong def St Kilda
6 - Gold Coast def Adelaide
