As good as he was against Carlton on Saturday, it was a case of what might have been for Stewart Crameri.

 

Make no mistake, the Essendon forward was outstanding against the Blues. He pulled down eight marks and an equal game-high three contested grabs. Even when Carlton key defender Lachie Henderson shadowed him for much of the second half after Michael Hurley went off with a hamstring strain, Crameri's aerial dominance continued.

He also finished the game with a career-high five goals.

But what if he had kicked straight? If he had, he could easily have kicked eight goals, his wasteful 5.6 – some from relatively easy shots – the one negative about his performance.

After the match, Bombers coach James Hird said the improvement Crameri, 23, had shown since debuting last season was symbolic of Essendon's improvement as a team.

""He encapsulates, I think, the Bombers at the moment: where he was 18 months ago and where he is now, the improvement has been outstanding,"" Hird said.

Hird said Crameri's performance against Carlton had been ""terrific"", praising his ability to provide a contest, even when outnumbered.

""Today, I thought he was just outstanding when a lot of the time he was one versus three or one versus two or two versus four,"" Hird said.

""He just competed and competed and, along with Paddy [Ryder], Michael Hurley and Tom Bellchambers, he gave us an option when Carlton were putting us under pressure.""

But Hird acknowledged Crameri's occasional goalkicking inaccuracy – he had kicked 7.8 in 2012 before Saturday, including 0.5 in round one – could be frustrating.

""He had 11 shots at goal and he probably missed three easy ones,"" Hird said.

""You sort of get cross with him because he misses those ones but he is such a delight to coach.

""He works his backside off. He's well respected and loved by his teammates, and the coaching staff hold him in the highest regard.""