When the final siren sounded at Box Hill City Oval on Sunday afternoon with Essendon 14 points clear, a meritorious win was sealed for the Bombers.

Claiming the scalp of the fifth-placed Hawks on their home deck after a final quarter with four lead changes was a validation of the improving skill and mettle of Dan Jordan’s side.

And according to vice-captain Aaron Heppell, the Bombers are building to be better week by week both on-field and off – because each will assist the other.

“The win was massive for our season,” said Heppell, who finished with 18 touches to go with a goal in his side’s pivotal second-quarter burst against Box Hill.

“We were sitting level on points with Box Hill and now it’s put us a game clear of the pack … we definitely did pump ourselves up for this game to really make our mark on the competition.

“We need to keep driving our standards and keep on performing to keep that buffer off the pack.”

The gritty win puts Essendon in third place on the ladder, tied with fourth-placed Geelong on 24 points with Richmond and Casey a game clear in first and second spot respectively.

The Bombers will play the Demons and the Tigers in the next two weeks before taking on sixth-placed Collingwood at Windy Hill in round 16.

Challenging? Absolutely.

But as Heppell says, his side wants to play the sort of footy that will make outsiders share the belief in the boys in red and black.

“We’ve seen over the years since I’ve been at the club that we’d drop a lot of these games in the first half of the year by a goal or two goals and then later in the year that would come back to bite us when we were pushing for top four or finals spots,” recalls Heppell.

“The thing we’ve really noticed this year is that real desire to win and close out games amongst the group.”

After debuting for Essendon in 2014, Heppell was voted vice-captain for his fifth season in the VFL system. He readily declares that he’s “really enjoying” his position in the leadership group and says that the culture being fostered by his side has translated into Essendon’s strong start to the season.

“Our on-field performance definitely reflects the culture we’re building,” he said.

“The little things we work on in building our culture – catching up for a feed with AFL and VFL boys and watching the AFL game together, going for breakfast after training together – little things like that bring the boys together and makes it that much more enjoyable.

“I’m definitely proud of the culture we’re building amongst the VFL system. This is the best we’ve been sitting mid-season since I’ve been part of the club.”

Essendon will play the Casey Demons in round 13 at RAMS Arena from 2.10pm on Saturday. The match will be broadcast on Channel 7.