Essendon Coach John Worsfold has praised the attitude of the players and High Performance staff in ensuring the group finished the season strongly.

The Bombers had to rely on its younger players throughout the season, increasing the risk of a drop off late in the year. 

But the side was able to win two of its last three games and the momentum continued last weekend when the VFL team won its Elimination Final.

“We rested guys at various times – we got criticised a couple of times for leaving guys out, but in the end it showed we were getting it quite right to finish the year as strongly as we did,” Worsfold told Bomber Radio.

“We set ourselves to play the year out, not to count down the weeks and want the season to finish – it was about let’s see every game as an opportunity to improve and learn.

“I was really pleased with everyone’s attitude in that regard.

“We had a bit of a rough patch in the middle of the year but we bounced back strongly from that.”

Some of Essendon’s young players will have another chance to impress this Sunday when the Bombers meet Footscray in a VFL semi-final.

Mason Redman was one of the Dons best in the come from behind win against Geelong.

He collected 22 possessions and Worsfold said the opportunity to perform in the pressure of the finals could help a player’s development. 

“It is a great learning curve for the players especially the ones that haven’t played a lot of AFL footy throughout the year, it is that next level up,” he said.

“It is a great experience for them and we’re certainly excited to see young players stepping up and having a big impact on the game like Mason Redman – I thought he played a really solid game.

“We monitored his pre-season workloads very heavily so he had a fair bit less of the loading other players had.

“He pretty quickly got into a rhythm of VFL footy and earned his opportunity earlier in the year to play three AFL games.

“To be finishing the year off strongly now is a real credit to him.”