It was a bleak start to the season for the Bombers at the MCG tonight but through all the doom and gloom came a bright light in the shape of Kepler Bradley. Yes, Brad Miller did get the better of him at times but Bradley’s willingness to work hard and absorb serious pressure was a real bonus for Essendon.

Bradley spent most of the night at centre half back and also had a run in the ruck. He had 16 possessions at half time to lead the Bombers’ stats sheet at the main break. He finished with 25 touches comprising 15 kicks, 10 handballs and 10 marks. It was a far more assured Bradley, than the one we saw glimpses of last season.

He still has parts of his game to improve upon – precision kicking being one - but the signs are good. And the 19-year-old didn’t back away from the physical stuff either. A couple of scuffles took place during the course of the night and Bradley quickly got involved. He is no thug but if it comes to looking after your teammates he will be there when you need him.

""It is always disappointing to lose no matter how much of the football you get yourself. They were always going to be hard to beat tonight given the build up but I thought we stuck with them pretty well at the start,"" Bradley said after the game. ""They just lifted in the third quarter and we didn’t.""

""It is good to get a kick, I wish it hadn’t been because the ball was coming down so often. It was my sixth game and I’m feeling a bit more comfortable. We have just got to get ourselves up for next week’s game against Carlton and get a win on the board.""