ESSENDON has narrowly avoided one of the upsets of the season after West Coast nearly pulled off a stunning comeback at Marvel Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

After a slow start, the Eagles had clawed back the ascendency but were denied the win thanks to a Kyle Langford goal which secured the Bombers' 10.13 (73) to 11.6 (72) victory.

The win keeps the Bombers, who entered the match sitting in 12th place on the ladder, in the finals conversation.

BOMBERS v EAGLES Full match coverage and stats

The last-gasp win keeps Essendon's finals dream alive, giving them a 10-10 record. The Bombers could be only half-a-game out of the top eight by the end of the round.

Brad Scott's side will likely need to win all of its remaining games against North Melbourne, Greater Western Sydney (away) and Collingwood to be assured of playing finals after failing to boost its poor percentage against the Eagles.

Last week's drought-breaking win over North Melbourne appeared to give the visitors a shot of confidence they have been lacking nearly all year.

West Coast travelled to Melbourne having won just four of their previous 45 games, but managed to outplay Essendon for long periods.

If the Eagles had won, they would have jumped off the bottom of the ladder and gone a game clear of North Melbourne, putting the Kangaroos in the box-seat to claim the No.1 draft pick.

But instead West Coast were left heartbroken, with premiership player Elliot Yeo slumping to the floor as the fulltime siren sounded.

Langford was clearly best-on-ground in a scrappy affair, while captain Zach Merrett was important with 29 disposals.

Dons unveil prized draft selection
It was a long time coming for Bombers supporters, but Essendon finally unveiled prized draftee Elijah Tsatas against the Eagles. Drafted with pick No.5 in last year’s draft, the youngster’s start to AFL life was less than ideal after tearing his meniscus in the pre-season. Not wanting to rush the long-term prospect, the Bombers made Tsatas bide his time in the reserves before earning a senior call-up, and his string of strong performances in the VFL saw the Bombers turn to the 18-year-old as they looked to make a push towards finals. Playing forward against the Eagles, Tsatas had 14 touches, six marks and two tackles. His field kicking, particularly going inside 50, was a real highlight and he looks to be a key component of the Bombers’ campaign to make finals

ESSENDON            1.6    7.8     8.10    10.13 (73)
WEST COAST         2.2    4.3     6.5      11.6  (72)

GOALS 
Essendon: Langford 5, Durham, Perkins, Parish, Wright, Redman
West Coast: Cripps 2, Darling 2, Allen 2, Maric 2, Hewett, Williams, Petruccelle

BEST 
Essendon: Parish, Hind, Langford, Merrett
West Coast: Kelly, Hunt, Duggan, Witherden

INJURIES 
Essendon:  TBC
West Coast: TBC

SUBSTITUTES 
Essendon: Alwyn Davey jnr (replaced Jye Caldwell at three-quarter-time)
West Coast: Greg Clark (replaced Jack Williams in the fourth quarter)