7:27pm: Saturday July 20. Apart from being my birthday, it renders significance to Essendon fans because that's the last time they won in 2013 -- when they beat GWS by seven goals.
Since then they have lost to Hawthorn (56 points), Collingwood (79 points), West Coast (53 points) and now North (45 points).
Many commentators have suggested that Essendon players would be relieved to be banned from this year's finals campaign. A big statement but not necessarily an overstatement, in my humble opinion.
If their form and style of play is evidence of the current playing group's mindset, fitness and willingness to win and play for each other then they are already thinking about having a much-needed rest in September.
What's more, the verdict hasn't even been handed down yet. That will come later this month -- and then there will be what is certain to be a lengthy defence by Essendon. How long will it go on for? How much more must the footy public endure?
For North, plenty to look forward to. They probably won't play finals this year (but could still make it mathematically and stand a better chance if Essendon is knocked out). They had 10 individual goalkickers and seven players with 20 disposals or more.
Daniel Wells booted four goals and was best afield; Levi Greenwood with 38 disposals wasn't far behind.
Roos have Hawthorn in Rd 21, while the Bombers meet Carlton, which trounced the Tigers today by 10 points.
7:12pm: FULL TIME - ESSENDON 9.16 (80) NORTH MELBOURNE 17.13 (115)
Daniel Wells awarded the Hird-Archer Medal for his four-goal performance.
GOALS: ESSENDON: Melksham 3, Bellchambers 2, Davey 2, Hardingham, Kommer. NORTH MELBOURNE: Wells 4, Tarrant 3, Petrie 3, Thomas, Wright, Bastinac, Cunnington, Gibson, Grima, Macmillan.
BEST: ESSENDON: Watson, Goddard, Stanton, Melksham. NORTH MELBOURNE: Wells, Greenwood, Petrie, Wright, Goldstein.
CROWD: 34,102. UMPIRES: Farmer, Hosking, Jeffrey.
INJURIES: Heppell (ankle).
7:08pm: Ben Jacobs unloads from outside 50. Hits the post. Deserved better. 115-70. 2mins to go.
7:05pm: Bastinac has got amongst the goalkickers. He becomes the Roos' 11th goalkicker. They lead 114-70.
7:02pm: Robbie Tarrant has a set shot from 40m out on the wrong side for a right footer. It slots it. His third. Has done his job. 108-70 with seven to play.
7:00pm: Howlett to Stanton, who marks overhead. Stanton gets the ... behind. Typical.
6:59pm: Bellchambers shows the others how it's done. Goal. 102-69. 9mins to run in this match. Bombers meet Carlton in Rd 22. Roos have got Hawthorn.
6:58pm: Ben Howlett has a snap but it misses to the right. Bombers taking it right up to the Roos this term but it's too late.
6:57pm: Hocking has a shot and hits the post. He has done a fair job on Harvey.
6:56pm: Grima, usually a defender, kicks his first goal in AFL in his 72nd game. Roos stretch the lead to 41 points.
6:54pm: Jake Melksham kicks a beauty... his third. Bombers trail by 35 points. 12mins remaining in this match.
6:51pm: Bombers go forward again through Daniher and HARDINGHAM has taken a speccy over Grima. He misses... Essendon has kicked 13 behinds today... Hardingham has two of them. Roos by 41.
6:50pm: Davey kicks a belated goal for the Bombers. Roos lead 96-54 with 15mins to go.
6:49pm: Prior to this match the Roos had a percentage of 120.6 -- the fifth highest in the competition. It will increase after tonight's win. The Roos will leap frog West Coast and bag 10th if the Eagles lose to the Cats.
6:47pm: Tarrant marks 30m out on the angle. Kicks his second. Roos lead 96-48. Good percentage now for the Roos.
6:46pm: Leigh Adams subbed off for the Roos. On is Will Sierakowski.
6:44pm: Final term underway and it has begun with a score review. Harvey had a shot from outside 50. Petrie juggled the mark through the goals. He was awarded the mark. Then kicked a behind. Strange game, AFL. Roos lead Bombers 89-48 early in the last.
6:36pm: THREE QUARTER-TIME: ESSENDON 6.12 (48) NORTH MELBOURNE 13.10 (88)
GOALS: ESSENDON: Melksham 2, Davey, Harkingham, Kommer, Bellchambers. NM: Wells 4, Petrie 3, Thomas, Wright, Tarrant, Macmillan, Gibson, Cunnington.
6:33pm: Tarrant has it again. Greenwood finds him with the clearing kick. Tarrant sprays it. Roos lead 87-48. Less than a minute to play in the third.
6:31pm: Robbie Tarrant marks on the lead. Good kick in by McKenzie. Tarrant kicks the goal. Margin back to 39 points. Roos well on top and will win this match barring a miracle.
6:30pm: Kyle Hardingham marks at the top of the goalsquare (Stanton was most unhappy he was overlooked)... Hardingham kicks the goal. The gap narrows however it is still quite large. 33 points with three mins to play in the third.
6:28pm: Roos go down and another indigenous player, with far greater confidence (and ability?) in Dan Wells gets his fourth goal. Roos on fire. They lead 81-42 late in the third term.
6:26pm: Leroy Jetta tries to do the impossible (think Peter Daicos) but Daicos he is not and a behind is the result.
6:25pm: Quite a few Essendon fans venting on Twitter. Follow the #AFLBombersNorth to see for yourself.
6:24pm: Pretty lackluster game this. North has been far more desperate. Essendon starting to look like a rabble. I heard one radio commentator declare that Carlton would start favourite against the Bombers on Saturday. Who do you think would win that one?
6:23pm: Roos go down and Black marks 20m out on the angle. He runs around and kicks ... a behind. Margin back out to 34 points.
6:22pm: Stu Crameri has tried hard but he still can't split the big ones. He has two behinds for the day. Dons trail by 33.
6:21pm: Sam Wright kicks a long goal for the Roos. They lead 74-40 with 8mins to play in the third term.
6:17pm: Bombers rebound (again) and it's Davey who has it again inside 50m. Out of bounds in the pocket.
6:17pm: Aaron Black has a shot from 40m but can only bring up a behind. Roos by 28.
6:15pm: Bombers rush it through for a behind. They then go coast to coast and Davey gets the goal. Much needed. First Bombers' goal of the second half. Roos by 27. Still 12mins to play in the third term.
6:13pm: Jake Melksham has a shot on the run but can't register his third goal. One behind. North by 32 points with 14mins to play in the third.
6:10pm: Mark Baguley clanger finds Boomer Harvey who spots up Petrie on a short lead. Kicks his third. Game over. Roos lead 66-33, 7mins third term.
6:09pm: Joe Daniher reads it better than Delaney and takes a nice overhead mark. But he misses again. He has four behinds. Roos lead 60-33, five mins into the third term.
6:07pm: Petrie wins a free kick, 30m out directly in front. Holding against Hooker. Goal, his second. North lead 60-32. Roos get another and it could be curtains. Called it early.
6:04pm: Second half has just begun. Roos enter their 50 through Wells who kicks for goal and gets his third. Bombers players became spectators. Roos by 22 points.
5:44pm: HALF-TIME - ESSENDON 4.8 (32) NORTH MELBOURNE 7.6 (48)
Goals: Essendon: Melksham 2, Bellchambers, Kommer. NM: Wells 2, Gibson, Petrie, Macmillan, Cunnington, Thomas.
Talking points:
- Bombers playmaker Dyson Heppell subbed off in the opening term after injuring his ankle. Jetta on, however hasn't had an influence.
- Roos have completely outplayed the Bombers but only lead by three goals. Still anyone's game.
- Nick Kommer and Brent Harvey enjoying a slapping contest.
5:41pm: Roos win it on the wing. Adams finds Tarrant 20m out. His set shot is off target. Roos lead 48-32 with less than 2mins to go in the half.
5:40pm: Thomas gets a free, 30m out slight angle. He kicks a behind and will have to wait for his 50th goal of the year. Roos lead 47-32, 3mins to play in the second.
5:38pm: Kommer with the quick reply. Lovely crumbing goal. Margin cut to 14 points with 4.15 to play.
5:37pm: Roos open up a 20-point lead after Ben Cunnington boots a terrific goal on his left foot. Roos lead 46-26 with four mins to play in the second term.
5:32pm: Jamie McMillan kicks a goal on the run to extend the Roos' lead to 14-points, 40-26. Errant Brendon Goddard handpass caused the turn over.
5:31pm: Crameri behind reduces the margin to eight points. Tight contest here at Etihad.
5:30pm: There has been an interchange infringement against North Melbourne. Tom Bellchambers has a shot from 35m out. Bombers get the goal. Roos stil lead 34-25, 15mins second term.
5:29pm: Ben Jacobs finds Daniel Wells in space. He goes back and slots his second goal to give the Roos some breathing space. Roos lead 34-19, nine mins to play in the second term.
5:27pm: Very soft free kick to Drew Petrie... holding the man against Hooker. Very soft. Softer than Forty Winks' finest. Petrie kicks the goal to give his side a nine-point buffer with 11 to go in the second term.
5:25pm: Bombers have lifted in this second term. If they win, they'll need to do so without their star midfielder Dyson Heppell who has been subbed off with an ankle injury.
5:24pm: Rushed behind to the Bombers to reduce the margin to three, in favour of the Roos, 12mins remaining in the second.
5:23pm: Thomas gives away a free to Hocking. Kicks long and Daniher marks on the second bite. Daniher kicks a behind, his third. Roos lead 22-18.
5:21pm: Bombers turn it over at halfback. Harvey, composed, dishes it by hand to Thomas, onto Sam Gibson, goal. Well deserved. Roos lead 22-17, Q2 9mins.
5:19pm: Dyson Heppell has been subbed off. He has an ice pack on his ankle. Leroy Jetta, the sub, has been activated.
5:19pm: Roos win the clearance and it ends up with Leigh Adams. He has a shot from 20m, tight angle. Misses. Disappointing attempt. Roos lead 17-16, Q2 6mins.
5:18pm: Bombers win it back through Melksham. He goes back and kicks his second goal from 50m. Bombers lead for the first time in the match 17-15, Q2 4mins.
5:16pm: Joe Daniher marks in front of Delaney. Has a chance to put the Bombers in front. One behind only. Bombers trail 15-11.
5:14pm: Second term underway. Hardingham has a chance to spark the Bombers' ship but his snap narrowly misses. Roos lead 15-10.
5:08pm: QUARTER-TIME - ESSENDON 1.3 (9) KANGAROOS 2.3 (15)
Goals: Essendon: Melksham. Kangaroos: Thomas, Wells.
5:06pm: Dyson Heppell hobbling off. Straight down to the rooms. Suspected ankle.
5:03pm: Behind to Jake Melksham. Roos lead 15-9 approaching quarter-time.
5:02pm: Bombers turn it over in defence. Boomer Harvey makes them pay by finding Sam Wright in space. He misses to the right. Roos lead 15-8 with four mins to play in the opening term.
5:00pm: Nick Kommer and Brent Harvey caught up in a humorous slapping contest. Yes, you read correctly. Kommer wins that battle with a nice open hander on Harvey's chest.
4:59pm: Rushed behind to the Bombers shortens the gap to six points in the Roos' favour with six minutes left in the first.
4:58pm: Suns were gallant but couldn't get the job done. Power win 16.17 (113) to 14.12 (96) to maintain a two-win buffer between it and ninth-placed Carlton.
4:54pm: Jake Melksham marks at half-forward, plays on and kicks a delicious goal from 50m on the run. Just what Doctor Reid ordered for the Bombers, which trail 14-7 in this opening term that is 13mins old.
4:50pm: Ben Jacobs taken high by Cale Hooker. Has a shot at goal but misses. Roos lead 14-1.
4:49pm: Rushed behind to the Roos who are on top early days. Roos lead 13-1, 9mins opening term.
4:47pm: Chain of handpasses ends up with Wells who snaps on his right boot and snags a lovely sausage. Roos lead 12-1, 7mins Q1.
4:45pm: Gibson caught by Stanton - holding the ball is the call. Stanton puts it to the goalsquare. Roos clear it.
4:44pm: Bombers win the clearance through Melksham who finds Joe Daniher on a searching lead. His shot is off-target, one behind. Roos lead 6-1, 3mins Q1.
4:43pm: Roos attack once more and Lindsay Thomas crumbs well and finishes for the first goal of the game. Roos lead 6-0, 2 mins opening term.
4:42pm: Play underway under the roof. North goes inside 50 through Petrie but the Bombers defence clear it.
4:39pm: My tip: Bombers by 20 points. They have been good this season and I'm expecting them to atone for their past three defeats.
4:38pm: Essendon has lost its last three games by an average of 63 points. Can it arrest the slide today? North, which lost to Adelaide by nine points last Sunday, just needs to keep winning to keep its mathematical chances alive.
A Bombers fan shows his support for embattled coach James Hird. Photo: Ken Irwin
4:34pm: Great win by Carlton over Richmond just minutes ago at the MCG. Final scores 16.10 (106) to 14.10 (96) after the Tigers led by 30 in the first term. Suns are taking it right up to the Power in Adelaide. Power by nine at the 15min mark of the last term.
4:32pm: Late changes NM: Ziebell, Thompson OUT Sierakowski, Greenwood IN. Ess as selected. Subs are Jetta (Ess) & Sierakowski (Nth).
4:32pm: Good afternoon and welcome to our live coverage of Essendon vs North Melbourne at Etihad.
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