Lloyd’s effort was especially crucial as it was achieved in the absence of both 200-gamer James Hird, who was taken to hospital for an x-ray on his ribs, and Scott Lucas, who injured his hamstring in the second quarter.
His first half was particularly important, with the Bombers playing indirect football and consequently struggling, he managed five of their seven before the main break and kept them within four points. From that rather fortunate position, the Dons were able to launch a second-half blitz which included the first seven goals of the third term, a period which decided the match. In the end they ran out comfortable winners 24.11 (155) to 11.11 (77), after kicking 17 goals to four in the second half.
Justin Murphy was instrumental in the third term, as were Adam McPhee and Adam Ramanauskas. Mark and Jason Johnson and Dean Solomon were also good for Essendon, while youngsters Ted Richards and Kepler Bradley showed plenty of promise.
The Tigers weren’t immune from injury concerns with skipper Wayne Campbell struggling with a shoulder problem and Rory Hilton falling heavily and appearing to injure his knee late in the third term.
But perhaps the greatest disappointment for the Tigers was the way they signed off on Rogers’s career having put themselves in such a good position with a terrific attack on the ball in the first half.
Matthew Richardson finished with six goals to be Richmond’s best while Joel Bowden got plenty of the ball after Hird was forced from the ground. Rogers battled hard as did Kane Johnson.
Richmond’s tall forwards provided an undermanned Essendon’s defence with a headache early on, and two goals from Richardson and one from Brad Ottens helped the Tigers to a great start. Lloyd kicked the Bombers’ two first-quarter goals but the Dons still trailed by 13 points at the first break.
Two goals in as many minutes allowed Essendon to close the gap early in the second term before Tim Fleming grabbed some breathing space for the Tigers. Hird’s first and Lloyd’s fourth then put the Bombers in front for the first time in the match but two more from the Tigers edged them back in front by four points at half time despite Lloyd’s fifth for the half.
Lloyd set the scene for an Essendon-dominated third term with his sixth goal which put the Bombers back in front. They piled on another six without reply, including two to the impressive Murphy and a great volleyed goal from Nathan Lovett-Murray to lead by over seven goals before Richardson pulled to margin the back to 37 points at the final change.
Richardson kicked the Tigers’ first two of the quarter but they were split by three Essendon goals, putting a Richmond revival out of reach. The Dons kicked ten goals to three for the term to top off the win, easily secure win number nine for the year and snap a three-match losing streak.
Richmond coach Danny Frawley said the players let themselves down by wasting opportunities in the first half, and that came back to haunt them later in the game.
“We had the game by the scruff of the neck and really didn’t put the scoreboard pressure on,” he said. “In games of football you’ve got to make the most of your opportunities. We had 35 entries in our forward 50 in the first half. We should have been four or five up at half time.”
Frawley said the second half was particularly disappointing considering the improvement the Tigers had shown over the past two matches.
“Our last six quarters of footy plus the first two today were some of the best footy we have played. Just to let it go the way we did in the second half was really disappointing in all areas, ball use, decision making, hardness and pressure.”
Richmond: 4.2, 7.6, 8.8 11.11 (77)
Essendon: 2.1, 7.2, 14.9 24.11 (155)
Goals: Richmond: Richardson 6, Moore, Fleming, Ottens, Rogers, Bowden
Essendon: Lloyd 9, Murphy 3, Misiti 2, J. Johnson 2, Lovett-Murray 2, Hille, McPhee, Alvey, M. Johnson, Hird, Bradley
Best: Richmond: Richardson, Bowden, Johnson, Campbell, Ottens, Rogers
Essendon: Lloyd, McPhee, Murphy, M Johnson, McVeigh, Richards, J.Johnson
Injuries: Essendon: Hird (ribs), Lucas (hamstring)
Richmond: Schultz (shin), Campbell (shoulder), Hilton (knee)
Changes: Essendon: Bolton (hamstring) replaced in selected side by Bullen
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Coates, Hendrie, Ryan
Crowd: 48,286 at the MCG
