AFL Rankings: Round 22 2022

 

It has been a tumultuous week so far at Essendon, following their 84-point loss on the weekend. A great deal of uncertainty reportedly exists as to who will be coaching them or in the football department next season. One football show I watched last night started with a montage of Essendon’s worst performances during the season, creating an image of a team that has just about hit rock bottom.

It hasn’t been quite as bad as that for the Bombers this season, but probably somewhat disappointing after their strong end to the 2021 home-and-away season. Putting aside expectations, certainly they have not been as poorly performed as West Coast or North Melbourne this year (see table below). From Rounds 16 to 18 they had an impressive stretch of form, beating Sydney and Brisbane – who will both play finals this year – and easily beating Gold Coast.

On the other hand, there are half a dozen ‘poor’ losses that stand out for Essendon across the season (see table above). These are: their 66-point loss in the opening round to Geelong, their 48-point loss to Fremantle in Victoria, their 58-point loss to Sydney (where Swan Luke Parker mocked their willingness to contest), their loss to the Eagles, and their recent losses to GWS and Port Adelaide. That they were favourite or close to favourite in four of those matches haven’t helped perceptions about their effort.

Ultimately, the Bombers have dropped off compared with last season, but their fall is possibly a little overblown. Their differentials in most major categories are negative but not horrendous. Their ‘double up’ fixtures of Brisbane, Sydney, Collingwood, Richmond, and Port Adelaide has not been the easiest of runs, and if not for an after-the-siren loss they would have come out of those fixtures relatively OK. Prolonged absences from two of their stars of last season – Darcy Parish and Jake Stringer – have hurt.

Not much of which will be comfort to a club and supporter base that has not won a final in 18 years. But even though this season has definitely been a step back, it has not all been the catastrophe it has seemed over the past fortnight.