The Bombers surprised everyone in 2021 by sneaking into finals on the back of a strong finish. Led by performances from their midfield stars, the emergence of a new crop made them the buzz team last year.
The real challenge now comes with the weight of expectation. An undoubtedly talented list will now look to push on to another level. Last year proved to be the season we saw Darcy Parish establish himself as a superstar of the competition.
His stunning year was capped off by rightly being named in the All-Australian team and a top-five Brownlow finish with 26 votes. With Parish ably aided by the likes of Jake Stringer, Zach Merrett, Jordan Ridley, Andy McGrath and Nick Hind, the core talent is strong.
More exciting perhaps is the young contingent coming through. The likes of Nik Cox, Archie Perkins and Harrison Jones announced themselves in 2021 and will look to kick on this year.
While the lack of depth at key positions is a concern, the club will be hoping another year of development will present new options. Having not won a final in over 6000 days, they will be keen to banish that demon once and for all.
Off-Season Moves
Ins: Jake Kelly (Adelaide), Ben Hobbs (pick 13), Alistair Lord (Pick 46), Garrett McDonagh (Pick 50), Patrick Voss (Rookie Draft Pick 9), Tex Wanganeen (SSP), Nick Martin (SSP)
Outs: Patrick Ambrose (Retired), Ned Cahill (Delisted), Marty Gleeson (Delisted), Cale Hooker (Retired), Lachie Johnson (Delisted), Sam McQuillan (Retired), Irving Mosquito (Delisted), David Zaharakis (Delisted)
Things could not have gone much better for the Bombers in 2021. After attacking the draft in 2020, the Dons injected some youth into a squad that looked in need of rejuvenation.
Although most had no expectations of finals, the Dons started the season strongly with some impressive wins. The emergence of Nick Hind out of defence and Darcy Parish as one of the competition's elite midfielders hinted at a new dawn.
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While the immediate impact of their young draftees in Nik Cox, Archie Perkins and Harrison Jones had the AFL world talking, as the season hit the business end, it became apparent this young outfit were a real chance to play finals.
A strong finish to the season, led by the superb Jake Stringer, saw the finals drought broken and some valuable experience added to the younger players in the ranks. The key now will be if they can overcome the next hurdle and secure a finals win.
Midfield depth: The strength for the Bombers lies in their midfield. It's stacked with plenty of star power, explosiveness, inside grunt and outside carry. Add in the developing Sam Draper and it's looking very good.
While Parish and Stringer are match-winners, the likes of Merrett, McGrath, Devon Smith and Dylan Shiel are consistent ball-winners who excel at stoppages. Throw in the youth of Jye Caldwell, Kyle Langford and new top-end draftee Ben Hobbs, it's an incredibly deep and balanced midfield.
The only issue that coach Ben Rutten will face is deciding who to start at the centre bounces. There are plenty of mouths to feed so keeping everyone happy with be his toughest task.
Key Forward Depth: With just Peter Wright, Harrison Jones, Kaine Baldwin and Alec Waterman to call on, depth at the key forward positions is an area for concern for Essendon.
While Wright performed admirably in 2021, his inconsistency hurts. Likewise, Jones impressed, yet is only in his second season this year, so it's unreasonable to place too much expectation on him.
The Bombers are crying out for a key tall to build their forward line around. This will be an area the Dons focus on in the next 12 months as it's currently their Achilles heel, preventing them from being a top four contender.
If they can continue to maximise the outputs of their small forwards like Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti and Will Snelling however, they are more than capable of covering this deficiency in 2022.
Darcy Parish
One of the great stories to come from season 2021 was that of Darcy Parish. Having long shown glimpses of talent and patches of form, he put it all together in a year that announced him as a star of the competition.
A midfield beast who can win the ball inside and out, he amassed the ball at will while getting clearances just as easily. His breakout year saw him average 30.5 disposals, 7.5 clearances, 4.2 marks and 3.9 tackles a game.
Midfielder
Disposals
Tackles
Clearances
These elite numbers saw him justifiably rewarded with his maiden All-Australian selection. One that looms as the first of many. As though that weren't enough, come Brownlow night he was again recognised for his sensational year, earning 26 votes and a top-five finish.
All the noise coming out of Essendon this pre-season is that Parish is ready to maintain the rage and continue his rise a star of the AFL. He alone will be worth tuning to Bombers games for.
Nik Cox
Not much more needs to be said about Cox. There aren't too many 200cm wingmen who could legitimately play most positions on the ground. It's scary how well he moves for his size, while his skill and composure have many earmarking him as a star of the future.
Whether he truly arrives this year or not, he looms as a strong candidate to be the Bombers breakout player in 2022. Having at one stage been favourite for the Rising Star in 2021, he has qualities to stamp himself on the competition.
It must be said, however, that young players can be inconsistent, so expectations should be reasonable. A player of his size and experience is still very much a work in progress, so the rough patch shouldn't be too surprising.
What is beyond doubt however, is that in the coming years he will be one of the most watchable players in the AFL.
Rounds 13-16
These rounds shape as crucial to the Bombers Finals hopes. They play Carlton, St Kilda, West Coast and Sydney. While it's not yet known how many of these are home games, what is likely is that these are the teams they'll be competing against for a place in the top eight.
In 2021, they lost to Sydney twice, smashed St Kilda, beat West Coast in Perth, and lost to Carlton. This year, the Bombers have a very real chance of beating off four of these clubs. Should they manage this, their chances of playing Finals become much better.
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Both games against the Swans in 2021 were close, so there's every reason to believe they can beat them in 2022. While the Blues present an old rival they'll be keen to knock off, following a narrow loss in 2021.
The Saints are a team they will fancy themselves against, after they destroyed them on the scoreboard and from an effort perspective in last year. Finally, the Eagles will be another team they hold no fear against following the watershed win in Perth last season.
There's every reason to believe the Bombers can win these four crunch games and set themselves up for a crack at a Finals spot.
It's hard to see the Dons taking a big step back, they're too talented for that. Their midfield is as strong as any, while they are efficient ball users coming out of defence and boast one of the best young intercept defenders in the game in Jordan Ridley.
However, a tougher fixture combined with a young team can lead to some inconsistent performances. Adding in the lack of a genuine key forward, it's tough to get a gauge on how well they'll score in 2022.
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Any prediction is fraught with danger and the Dons are every chance to play Finals. However, the competition for those final couple of spots in the eight is fierce, the Bombers will need to improve again to be up to the challenge.
Predicted Position: 10th