Match result
Essendon 20.14 134 def. North Melbourne 5.10 40
Player stats
AFL-listed
Curtis Taylor (14 disposals, 1 goal), Declan Watson (7 disposals), Joel Crocker (16 disposals), Kyron Hayden (13 disposals, 8 tackles), Nathan Hrovat (28 disposals), Nick Larkey (8 disposals, 1 goal), Red Og Murphy (5 disposals), Taylor Garner (9 disposals), Tom Campbell (12 disposals, 34 hit-outs, 1 goal), Tom Wilkinson (4 disposals), Tristan Xerri (2 disposals, 12 hit-outs)
VFL-listed
Alex Morgan (14 disposals), Brendan Whitecross (27 disposals), Cameron Hodges (12 disposals), Chris Jansen (18 disposals), Dan Robinson (29 disposals), Fraser Cameron (3 disposals), Jordan Harper (13 disposals), Lous Cunningham (19 disposals), Matt Northe (10 disposals), Nash Holmes (19 disposals), Sam Parsons (11 disposals), Ty Leonardis (15 disposals, 1 goal)
Recap
North Melbourne’s VFL side fell to an energetic Essendon outfit at Avalon Airport Oval on Saturday morning.
A competitive opening term was overshadowed by one-sided showings in both the second and fourth terms, which allowed the visitors to boast comfortable buffers at all breaks.
Promising youngster Curtis Taylor carried over his impressive pre-season form, tallying 14 disposals and a goal, while Kyron Hayden worked hard defensively.
The powerfully-built rookie finished the game with eight tackles, sitting atop of the competition in this statistic with 30 across three rounds.
Mercurial forward Taylor Garner continues on his path towards a senior recall, playing a large majority of the game.
Experienced veteran Nathan Hrovat provided coverage on both ends of the ground after starting in defence, while Tom Campbell was among the best in the royal blue and white.
What the coach said
“We turned the ball over a lot by hand and foot today,” David Loader told North Media.
“Our acquisition stuff was really poor. They (the Bombers) scored a lot their goals off our turnovers. We’ve got to get better with our ball use.
“We’ll keep working with our younger players so that they can get better and play AFL footy.
“I’d rather see the boys trying to do what they’re here for and make mistakes, playing with an intensity that allows us to bring our best.
“We had little wins today and our job is to keep finding those little wins, and to make them bigger and bigger.”
Best of AFL
Tom Campbell
The 27-year-old has established himself as a dual threat in both ruck and forward positions.
A further 34 hit-outs against a fellow AFL affiliated side, including 14 disposals and a goal, have placed Campbell in contention for a senior recall.
Best of VFL
Brendan Whitecross
A veteran at the highest level, Whitecross was always expected to be a senior voice among a plethora of developing Roos.
The captain played an important role on Sam Parsons, while racking up 27 disposals in defence.
