A difficult loss to West Coast isn’t deterring Ellyse Gamble and Essendon from an exciting fortnight ahead.
The Bombers struggled to find scoreboard impact in trying conditions at Windy Hill, with the Eagles eventually holding off a late fightback to win by four points.
After being challenged in the early stages, the Bombers can take some important lessons away from the defeat.
“That game definitely hurts. Really tough conditions out there, West Coast brought it to us right from the start of the game, their pressure was high and they hit the scoreboard early,” Gamble said.
“Unfortunately, we couldn’t capitalise on a few opportunities in front of goal, we were chasing tail for a lot of the game and we struggled (in moments) to get the game back on our terms.”
Gamble was a strong contributor in defence, taking two crucial marks in the final term to help propel the Bombers’ late surge.
The spark may have come too late in the piece, but the Bombers are aware of the opportunity to tidy up going forward.
“It was do or die (in the last quarter). It was really positive signs to see how we could get the momentum going our way. We needed some people to step up and we definitely had (that) across all lines,” Gamble said.
“We had that fire in our bellies to get out there and show what we could do. Unfortunately, we just didn’t have long enough.
“I felt like we held them up well and competed hard, but as I said, we just couldn’t find those opportunities when we were in space.”
A chance to bounce back against the Blues at home will begin the final fortnight of the home-and-away season, and Gamble is confident the Bombers can get back to business.
“We absolutely love playing at Windy Hill, and that’s the great thing about footy, we have an opportunity again next week to get to work, review the game and learn from today,” Gamble said.
“We’ll bring the Essendon spirit back on our home deck.”
