A courageous effort shown by Henry Slattery set up Essendon’s 35-point win over Carlton, Andrew Welsh said today.
Speaking to the media at Windy Hill, Welsh said he was impressed by Slattery’s bravery to put his body on the line with little regard for his own wellbeing.
Twenty-two year-old Slattery - who has played 44 games for Essendon - suffered a fractured cheek bone and will miss one week after an accidental collision with Brendan Fevola in the first quarter.
“To do what he did five minutes into the game is a courageous effort and not many guys would fall into a hole in front of Fevola. For him to do that really set the standard for the rest of the team,"" Welsh said.
“I heard that Fev gave him a call last night which shows great sportsmanship. I know that injuries are part of footy, but for Henry to do that so early in the game, really set up the game for us.”
“It really shows the way the team is going and their dedication to their football.
“Henry was up at the club last night when we came back here to do recovery last night. He came back here with his mum and girlfriend to watch the footy on Foxtel because he hasn’t got it at home but he was in good spirits.""
Welsh said the past two wins are a reward for the dedicated work his younger teammates are putting into their football.
After putting the club’s eight-game losing streak behind them, Welsh believes the team will only get better in the coming rounds.
“Over a couple of months the team has gone through some hard times and you would come to the club on a Monday feeling a bit sick and really feeling down on yourselves,” Welsh said.
“For the younger guys who have really been plugging away hard to see some reward is really good.
""It's probably easy for the younger guys who have only been around the club for a few years to go into their shells but they have been working hard and it has been great for them to get some results over the past couple of weeks.
“For guys like Kyle Reimers and David Myers and the likes to really stand up and charge and surge again really shows the development of these guys.
“For a senior player like myself who has been at the club for a couple of years to be able to see the resilience that they are showing in their careers is a good sign for the club.”
