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Essendon Bombers vs Carlton Blues highlights: Dons by four goals

Roar Guru
27th August, 2016
Venue: MCG
Time: Saturday August 27, 2:10pm AEST
TV: Foxtel 503 Live
Betting: Essendon $3.65, Carlton $1.30

Last five
R6, 2016, Carlton 10.12 (72) d Essendon 8.9 (57) at the MCG
R3, 2015, Essendon 16.9 (105) d Carlton 11.18 (84) at the MCG
R23, 2014, Carlton 14.6 (90) drew Essendon 13.12 (90) at the MCG
R3, 2014, Essendon 21.12 (138) d Carlton 8.9 (57) at the MCG
R22, 2013, Essendon 12.10 (82) d Carlton 9.22 (76) at the MCG

Essendon
B: M.Dea, M.Hartley, M.Gleeson
HB: B.Goddard, M.Brown, P.Ambrose
C: D.Zaharakis, Z.Merrett, J.Long
HF: J.Kelly, J.Laverde, A.McDonald-Tipungwuti
F: D.Parish, J.Daniher, J.Merrett
R: M.Leuenberger, C.Bird, C.Dempsey
I/C: K.Langford, N.Kommer, C.McKenna, S.McKernan

Carlton
B: L.Plowman, S.Rowe, J.Weitering
HB: Z.Tuohy, S.White, S.Docherty
C: K.Simpson, P.Cripps, D.Thomas
HF: L.Sumner, L.Jones, N.Graham
F: D.Buckley, L.Casboult, A.Phillips
R: M.Kreuzer, B.Gibbs, M.Wright
I/C: S.Kerridge, D.Armfield, D.Cuningham, J.Silvagni
Essendon take on the Suns in a clash of two struggling sides. (AAP Image/Joe Castro)
Roar Guru
27th August, 2016
111
5522 Reads

Match result:

The Essendon Bombers finished off their season with a third win, defeated the Carlton Blues by four goals on Saturday.

» Click here to read the full match report

Final score
Essendon 15.13.103
Carlton 10.19.79

Match preview:

The Essendon Bombers will bid farewell to their top up players when they take on the Carlton Blues on Saturday at the MCG. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 2:10pm (AEST).

The Bombers will be relieved to see the back of a horror season that started with the suspension of 12 players and has seen them as hot favourites to win their first wooden spoon in more than 70 years.

The season hasn’t been as bad as first expected as the development and emergence of several youngsters has given fans some hope that next season things can quickly turn around.

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Only two of their top up players have been selected for this game but Essendon will send off all ten top up players in a special parade around the MCG.

The Blues will be looking to finish the season on a high with their eighth win, more than most would’ve expected at the start of the season. Rookie coach Brendon Bolton would have been quite happy with the promise the Blues have shown this year as they have been competitive in a majority of their games.

Six of their fourteen losses have been by under twenty points, and in the past month they have pushed both the Swans and Hawks. Last week they had one of their best wins of the season when they ended the Melbourne Demons’ finals aspirations with a surprise 20-point victory.

With Bryce Gibbs and Patrick Cripps dominating in the midfield and Kade Simpson and Sam Docherty providing drive off half-back, the Blues jumped the Dees from the start and never let up.

The Bombers are coming off a 40-point loss the Bulldogs who jumped the Bombers with a seven-goal opening term. The Bombers were competitive for the last three quarters and got within five goals early in the last, but poor kicking for goal again cost them at crucial parts of the game.

Prediction
A highlight of this game will be the midfield battle between two of the brightest young stars in the game, the Blues’ Cripps and the Bombers’ Zach Merrett, who have both had career-defining seasons.

Both will have a big say as to which team can gain the upper hand in the midfield battle. The Blues form has been a little steadier in the last month and they should be able to find enough to hold off the Bombers.

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Blues by 12 points.

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