ESSENDON interim coach Dean Solomon has labelled Carlton forward Harry McKay’s time-wasting efforts in the dying moments of the Bombers' five-point King’s Birthday Eve loss as ‘smart’.

McKay took a mark 60m out from goal and signalled to the umpire that he was taking a shot, winding down the clock as he used his 30 seconds to prepare.

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McKay's shot dropped 30m short of the goal line, highlighting that he was never in range.

The Bombers kicked the final two goals of the game, but ran out of time, going down by five points to their arch rivals.

“I think it's just smart isn't it?,” Solomon said in his post-match press conference.

“It's just using the rules and maximising the opportunity of that time and milking the clock and putting themselves in a winnable position.

“There’s so there's nothing I can do to control that, he did it really well.”

Essendon led by a game-high 23 points midway through the second term, but were outclassed by their opponents in the second half.

Despite the loss, Solomon applauded his players for their efforts.

“I thought the boys were really brave tonight, I thought the way we played was really brave,” Solomon said.

“They wanted to sing the song, they desperately wanted to sing the song and the players and all the staff, this footy club, I feel it deserves to sing the song soon, but I felt it was a big step in the right direction tonight.”

The win makes it four wins from four games for Carlton's interim coach Josh Fraser.

“I thought we were able to hang in long enough and take some important moments in the second half," Fraser said.

"We challenged ourselves around work rate at half time and our midfield getting to work a bit more and it looked to be better in the second half."

A key move by the Carlton coaches was to put George Hewett on Essendon’s Sam Durham, who was arguably best on ground in the first half with 21 disposals.

Fraser agreed that the move played a part in his side’s turnaround, but indicated that it was his midfield as a whole that won back the momentum.

“We sent Hewett to Durham in the second half and that had an impact,” Fraser said.

“But it was largely around our method and making sure our starting points were really strong and then I thought we coughed the ball up a lot in the first half as well, so we had to tidy that part of our game up.

“Credit to the players, they were met with some challenges. We did challenge them at half time and they responded really well, so that's another sign of us moving forward.”

Key midfielder Sam Walsh spent some time in the hands of the Blues' medical team, but Fraser confirmed the injury wasn't serious and would benefit from a week off during the side's round 14 bye.

“I think his (Walsh) shoulder's just been a bit grumbly,” Fraser said.

“He's someone that will appreciate a couple of days to recharge but he came back onto the field and he's as tough as nails. 

"He's had a terrific start to the season for us and he's led the way beautifully. So this time of year most players are carrying some soreness but no, he's okay.”

Fraser continued to play down his desire to take on the role of head coach permanently despite his 100 per cent win rate as coach.

“No, no, no. I've got no plans to do any of that (signing on as head coach),” Fraser said.

“I've got some plans to try and get back to the farm at Mansfield and spend a couple of days up there and recharge a little bit but no plans other than that.”