The Roos led by 20 points at three-quarter time but allowed the Bombers to kick the first two goals of the last quarter to slice the margin to seven points.
Ruckman Hamish McIntosh marked and goaled at the 23-minute mark of the quarter to ensure North's victory.
"It was a pretty hot contest in the last quarter," Hale said. "We probably missed a few goals we should have kicked which may have sealed the contest a bit earlier."
North will aim for successive wins when it plays 16th-placed Richmond on Saturday night and Hale said the club would take a similar approach to last week.
The need to find form lifted a notch after the 54-point loss to Hawthorn.
"We're not too focused on what Richmond does," Hale said when asked if his club had considered the beleaguered Tigers' on- and off-field woes.
"We're worried about what we can come out and do and hopefully get to three (wins) and two (losses). That's our main priority.
"That's what we focused on last week and came away with the points. If we do the stuff that we know we do well, we think we can come away with a win."
Hale added the win over Essendon was a relief and that rewarding supporters was also among the players' aims.
After struggling to have an influence in the first two rounds of the season and suffering concussion against the Hawks, Hale kicked four goals and constantly bothered Essendon's defence with his height and leading to half-forward.
