Matthew Lloyd, a legend of Essendon, has made a bold statement about his former team, calling them “the worst side in the competition.” This comes as young talent Archie Roberts passionately supported embattled coach Brad Scott, whose position at the club is under increasing pressure due to another wave of injuries.
Roberts also urged Essendon fans to continue their support after the club’s hopes for a much-needed victory against Richmond were dashed by a series of injuries. The Bombers are now sitting at the bottom of the ladder with a significant number of players sidelined ahead of upcoming matches against other bottom-four teams.
The situation at The Hangar, where the injury ward is once again crowded, mirrors the club’s struggles from last year’s second half. This adds complexity for the Bombers’ management when evaluating Scott’s performance as coach.
As Essendon supporters left the ground on Friday night following the Dons’ 23rd defeat in their past 24 games, Bombers president Andrew Welsh and chief executive Tim Roberts were seen deep in conversation in the dressing rooms beneath the MCG. These discussions are common regardless of the match outcome.
CEO Roberts had previously expressed strong support for Scott, but the statistics tell a different story. Coach Scott has only tasted victory once in 365 days since the Dreamtime game last year and has managed just 29 wins out of 80 games in charge at Essendon.
Before this round, the Bombers already had 12 players on their injury list. The situation worsened with injuries to key players such as skipper Andrew McGrath, midfielder Sam Durham, forward Archer May, midfielder Jye Caldwell, and small forward Matt Guelfi. Defender Jordan Ridley is expected to return this week.
The upcoming fixtures against West Coast and Carlton, currently 16th and 15th respectively, were seen as winnable before the injury crisis. However, the Bombers will now likely be considered underdogs in these matches.
Lloyd criticized the team’s lack of confidence in their ball usage, placing the blame on the coaching staff.
“I think you are still responsible as the coach if you can’t nail your fundamentals,” Lloyd said on Nine’s The Footy Show. “That’s a coaching group, they have to be looked at. They have become the worst side in the competition. I think everyone would look at that and say how we got in this position?”
Archie Roberts, one of the most promising young players in the rebuilding Bombers, voiced his support for Scott, echoing the sentiments of former captain Zach Merrett.
“I hope he knows, and everyone knows, that he’s got the backing of all the players because we absolutely love him,” Roberts, 20, told this masthead on Friday night. “I couldn’t speak any more highly of him, and I want him coaching me for the rest of my career, and I know everyone in this team does.”
“I want him to know, and everyone else to know, that he’s got my backing, and every person on this list’s backing, and we absolutely love him to death.”
Club chief Tim Roberts confirmed last week that Scott will remain the coach next year.
“Yeah look, Brad is part of the strategy, he’s totally aligned. From where I sit, absolutely, Brad Scott’s going to be our coach,” the CEO told Seven.
Archie Roberts encouraged Bombers fans to continue supporting the team. Despite being a home game for Richmond, there was a strong presence of red-and-black supporters in the crowd of 78,815.
Roberts, along with May, Nate Caddy, and Sullivan Robey, were among the Bombers’ better performers in the loss.
“I hope they see what we’re building and the future ahead,” Archie Roberts said. “This season’s not done, and we’re going to be taking it right up to every team we play this year, but I think they can see a lot of excitement.”
“We love you guys [the supporters], and they’re awesome every single week, every year. Please keep turning up because we need them going into games. We felt them tonight, and without them, we’re no chance.”
The young Bomber admitted the loss hit him hard.
“It’s very raw, to be honest,” Roberts said. “When you have confidence going into a game and you work your arse off week after week, not getting the reward, feel like you’re building, and then for that to wait to end the way it did is so disappointing.”
“I’m someone that sort of takes losses pretty hard. We’re going to go review it and go head over to WA next week and take it right up to West Coast. It’s going to be a tough weekend for me.”
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