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It was hardly a straightforward victory, but Essendon showed plenty of grit and heart to defeat Collingwood by 20 points in front of a big MCG crowd on Saturday night. With scores level at three-quarter-time it was a matter of which side wanted it most. The Bombers kicked six goals in the first 15 minutes of the last term to decide the issue. Mark Johnson, young Cory McGrath, Jason Johnson, Joe Misiti and Mark Mercuri were all instrumental in the win.
James Hird will play against Collingwood at the MCG tomorrow night. That was the major news to come out of Essendon's final training session at Windy Hill this afternoon. Hird completed the first half of tonight before leaving the track as is customary for him on the final training night of each week. He iced the ankle and assuming he pulls up well tomorrow he is a certain starter. It completes a miraculous recovery by Hird who was expected to miss up to four weeks after landing awkwardly on the ankle against Carlton.
Read nowWe acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung people of the Kulin Nation as the Custodians on whose Country we are based. We acknowledge their ongoing connection to Country and pay respect to their Elders, past and present. We extend that acknowledgement and respect to all First Nations peoples throughout Australia.
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