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This Friday night, the Essendon Bombers travel to the SCG to take on the Sydney Swans for an exciting clash. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage of the match at 7:50pm (AEST).
Coming off the bye, Essendon will have a lot riding on this match, looking to cement their place in the top eight. With only one win separating themselves at eighth, and the 15th placed Carlton, the Bombers will be feeling the pinch in such a tightly contested season.
Their last match was a win against the fourth-placed Port Adelaide, destroying the Power to the tune of 70 points, so the Dons will be hoping to continue their momentum into the year.
For Sydney, they are coming back home after an incredible come-from-behind victory against Richmond at the MCG. After trailing by 36 points at one point during the game, the Swans stormed home, kicking the last 8 of 9 goals in the game to put themselves only a game outside the eight.
However, after a 0-6 start to the season, Sydney must keep winning to stay in touch with the top eight, and the finals. A win Friday night would see the Swans catapult themselves into the top eight for the first time this season.
Essendon – Zach Merrett
Close to All-Australian selection, if not a guarantee, Merrett has been the standout for the Bombers this year, and he ran riot against the Power a couple of weeks back, collecting 38 disposals, along with 7 tackles and 11 score involvements. He will look to go big again to continue his good form.
Sydney – Josh Kennedy
JPK was not as effective as he would have liked to be last week, but the Swans captain has the most disposals, most contested possessions and most clearances for Sydney, so when he is in form, he is a dangerous player against any opposition.
While Essendon are doing better than anybody could have expected, their record away from home is not as strong. They have only won one game out of four that weren’t in Melbourne, that against the last-placed Brisbane Lions. Combined with that, Sydney is on a hot streak at the moment, and seemed to have found their groove. With the home crowd, I’m going Sydney to get up on Friday.
Sydney by 22 points.
Can Essendon cement their place inside the top eight? Or will Sydney continue their strong run of form and break into the eight for the first time this year? Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 7:50pm (AEST).
You can follow Dylan on Twitter @dylcarmody77.
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