# 2011 Essendon Football Club season

The 2011 Essendon Football Club season is the club's 113th season in the Australian Football League (AFL).
Essendon won 11 matches, drew one and lost 10 matches in the 2011 season. Essendon won five matches within the first eight rounds, before a form slump culminated in a five-match losing streak and Essendon dropping out of the top eight for the first time this season when it lost to Hawthorn by 65 points.
Their season begun with a 55-point thumping of triple-preliminary finalists the Western Bulldogs before a narrow five-point defeat to Sydney followed. Wins over St Kilda (in their captain Nick Riewoldt's 200th game) followed, before a thrilling draw against Carlton and a five-goal loss in the Anzac Day match against Collingwood followed.
Round 6 brought along the mother of all Essendon wins – a 139-point thumping of the Gold Coast at home, with the Bombers recording a record first-quarter score of 15.4 (94) and its quarter-time lead of 93 points also brought along a new record. Amidst this, Essendon lost the second quarter in surprising circumstances, before going on to finish the job to record its first win over a side featuring Gary Ablett since 2005. Only two more wins would follow, against the West Coast Eagles and Brisbane Lions in the weeks after the Suns annihilation.
Essendon pulled off the boilover of the season when they defeated the previously unbeaten Geelong by four points in Round 15, 2011, without their injured skipper, Jobe Watson. It was their first win over the Cats in almost six years, having not beaten them since Round 18, 2005. However, it was just their second win over Geelong since 2003, leaving them with one of the worst records against Geelong in recent times.
Round 20 saw Essendon at home to Sydney for the first time since Round 1, 2006 when Essendon triumphed by 27 points. Essendon won by one point after a post-siren shot by Sydney's Adam Goodes drifted to the left. Round 23 saw Essendon qualifying the finals for the second time in two years, when it defeated Port Adelaide by 7 points at Etihad Stadium. It ended a seven-year winless run against the side, having not beaten them since Round 18, 2004.
Essendon's elimination final against Carlton was lost by 62 points, ending what was otherwise a promising first year for James Hird in the Essendon coaching role.

## Squad
### Trades

| Player | Traded From | Traded To | Traded For |
| None ||||
| Player | Traded From | Traded To | Traded For |
| None ||||

### Drafts

| Round | Pick | Name | From | League |
| 1 | 8 | Dyson Heppell | Gippsland Power | TAC Cup |
| 2 | 31 | Ariel Steinberg | Bendigo Pioneers | TAC Cup |
| 3 | 48 | Alex Browne | Oakleigh Chargers | TAC Cup |
| 4 | 64 | Luke Davis | West Adelaide Football Club | SANFL |
| 5 | 80 | Michael Ross | Gippsland Power | TAC Cup |
| 6 | 95 | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| 7 | 106 | Ben Howlett | Rookie Promotion | |
| Round | Pick | Name | From | League |
| 1 | 12 | Josh Jenkins | Lake Boga | CMFL |
| 2 | 29 | Jay Neagle | Essendon | AFL |
| 3 | 46 | Tyson Slattery | Essendon | AFL |
| 4 | 61 | James Webster^ | Woy Woy | BDFL |
| Round | Pick | Name | From | League |
| 1 | 4 | Michael Hibberd | Frankston | VFL |

## Results
### Pre-season (NAB Cup)
#### Round 1

| | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | | |
| Friday, 18 February 7:30 pm | Essendon 1.11.1 (76) | def. | Brisbane Lions 0.2.2 (14) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 23,313) | Report |
| Friday, 18 February 9:25 pm | St Kilda 0.6.2 (38) | drew with | Essendon 0.5.8 (38) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 24,158) | Report |
| Essendon progressed to the second round. ||||||

#### Quarter-finals

| | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 | | |
| Thursday, 24 February 7:10 pm | Melbourne 1.11.7 (82) | def. by | Essendon 1.17.20 (121) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 13,863) | Report |
| Essendon progressed to the third round. ||||||

#### Semi-finals

| | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | | |
| Friday, 4 March 7:40 pm | Essendon 0.12.12 (84) | def. | St Kilda 0.6.9 (45) | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 17,632) | Report |

#### Grand Final

| | 2011 NAB Cup Grand Final | 2011 NAB Cup Grand Final | 2011 NAB Cup Grand Final | | |
| Friday, 11 March 7:45 pm | Essendon | def. by | Collingwood | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 45,304) | Report |
| | 0.2.2 (14) 0.3.4 (22) 0.9.5 (59) 0.13.8 (86) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 0.3.4 (22) 0.7.6 (48) 1.11.7 (82) 1.15.9 (108) | Umpires: Rosebury, Stevic, Nicholls, Jennings Michael Tuck Medal: Heath Shaw Television broadcast: Seven Network | Umpires: Rosebury, Stevic, Nicholls, Jennings Michael Tuck Medal: Heath Shaw Television broadcast: Seven Network |
| | | Super Goals | 1 Buckley | 1 Buckley |
| Hurley, Monfries 3 Ryder, Watson, Zaharakis 2 Hocking 1 | Hurley, Monfries 3 Ryder, Watson, Zaharakis 2 Hocking 1 | Goals | 3 Krakouer, Dawes 2 Cloke 1 Ball, Beams, McCarthy, Pendlebury, Swan, Thomas, Wellingham | 3 Krakouer, Dawes 2 Cloke 1 Ball, Beams, McCarthy, Pendlebury, Swan, Thomas, Wellingham |
| Hardingham (groin) | Hardingham (groin) | Injuries | Nil | Nil |
| This was the first pre-season Grand Final Essendon has mad since winning the title in 2000. ||||||

### Home and Away season
#### Round 1

| | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | | |
| Sunday, 27 March 1:10 pm | Essendon | def. | Western Bulldogs | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 42,617) | Report |
| | 3.4 (22) 9.12 (66) 13.15 (93) 16.17 (113) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 4.1 (25) 5.2 (32) 7.5 (47) 8.10 (58) | Umpires: Farmer, Kennedy, Findlay Television broadcast: Fox Sports | Umpires: Farmer, Kennedy, Findlay Television broadcast: Fox Sports |
| Ryder, Watson, Monfries, Hurley, Stanton, Zaharakis 2 Crameri, Winderlich, McVeigh, Myers 1 | Ryder, Watson, Monfries, Hurley, Stanton, Zaharakis 2 Crameri, Winderlich, McVeigh, Myers 1 | Goals | 2 Hall, Giansiracusa 1 Djerrkura, Wood, Grant, Hill | 2 Hall, Giansiracusa 1 Djerrkura, Wood, Grant, Hill |
| Watson, Hille, Hocking, Stanton, Jetta, Melksham, Ryder, Heppell | Watson, Hille, Hocking, Stanton, Jetta, Melksham, Ryder, Heppell | Best | Murphy, Higgins, Ward, Picken, Markovic, Hudson | Murphy, Higgins, Ward, Picken, Markovic, Hudson |
| Nil | Nil | Injuries | Wood (ankle) | Wood (ankle) |
| This was James Hird's first game as coach of Essendon ||||||
| | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes |
| 3 David Hille (Essendon) 2 Jobe Watson (Essendon) 1 Paddy Ryder (Essendon) ||||||

#### Round 2

| | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 | | |
| Sunday, 3 April 2:10 pm | Sydney | def. | Essendon | ANZ Stadium (crowd: 28,082) | Report |
| | 1.5 (11) 6.8 (44) 10.11 (71) 14.14 (98) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 4.4 (28) 8.7 (55) 12.9 (81) 13.15 (93) | Umpires: Rosebury, Pannel, Jennings Television broadcast: Channel 7 | Umpires: Rosebury, Pannel, Jennings Television broadcast: Channel 7 |
| McGlynn, Bolton 3 White, Bevan 2 Goodes, Kennedy, Rohan, O’Keefe 1 | McGlynn, Bolton 3 White, Bevan 2 Goodes, Kennedy, Rohan, O’Keefe 1 | Goals | 2 Ryder, Crameri, Winderlich, Hurley 1 Jetta, Davey, Hocking, McVeigh | 2 Ryder, Crameri, Winderlich, Hurley 1 Jetta, Davey, Hocking, McVeigh |
| Goodes, Bevan, Bolton, McGlynn, O’Keefe, Grundy, Hannebery | Goodes, Bevan, Bolton, McGlynn, O’Keefe, Grundy, Hannebery | Best | Watson, Stanton, Hurley, Heppell, Bellchambers, Ryder, Davey | Watson, Stanton, Hurley, Heppell, Bellchambers, Ryder, Davey |
| Nil | Nil | Injuries | Hille (hip) replaced by Davey | Hille (hip) replaced by Davey |
| | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes |
| 3 Ben McGlynn (Sydney) 2 Jude Bolton (Sydney) 1 Jobe Watson (Essendon) ||||||

#### Round 3

| | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round 3 | | |
| Sunday, 10 April 4:40 pm | St Kilda | def. by | Essendon | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 47,762) | Report |
| | 5.3 (33) 7.5 (45) 8.9 (57) 12.12 (84) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 8.2 (50) 13.2 (80) 19.5 (119) 21.10 (136) | Umpires: Donlon, McBurney, Armstrong Television broadcast: Channel 7 | Umpires: Donlon, McBurney, Armstrong Television broadcast: Channel 7 |
| Riewoldt 3 Milne, Steven 2 Dal Santo, Fisher, Gram, Montagna, Stanley 1 | Riewoldt 3 Milne, Steven 2 Dal Santo, Fisher, Gram, Montagna, Stanley 1 | Goals | 3 Hurley, Watson, Winderlich, Zaharakis 2 Howlett, Monfries, Ryder 1 Crameri, Jetta, Bellchambers | 3 Hurley, Watson, Winderlich, Zaharakis 2 Howlett, Monfries, Ryder 1 Crameri, Jetta, Bellchambers |
| Gram, Dal Santo, Armitage, Fisher, Ray | Gram, Dal Santo, Armitage, Fisher, Ray | Best | Watson, Hocking, Bellchambers, Ryder, Crameri, Hurley, Fletcher | Watson, Hocking, Bellchambers, Ryder, Crameri, Hurley, Fletcher |
| Essendon defeated St Kilda for the fourth time in succession. Nick Riewoldt played his 200th AFL game for the Saints in that match. ||||||
| | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes |
| 3 Jobe Watson (Essendon) 2 Heath Hocking (Essendon) 1 Jason Gram (St Kilda) ||||||

#### Round 4

| | Round 4 | Round 4 | Round 4 | | |
| Saturday, 16 April 2:10 pm | Carlton | drew with | Essendon | MCG (crowd: 78,605) | Report |
| | 0.2 (2) 4.9 (33) 6.13 (49) 11.13 (79) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 3.2 (20) 6.3 (39) 7.8 (50) 11.13 (79) | Umpires: Nicholls, Stewart, McBurney Television broadcast: Channel 10 and One HD | Umpires: Nicholls, Stewart, McBurney Television broadcast: Channel 10 and One HD |
| Simpson 3 Waite, Garlett, Laidler, Curnow, Carrazzo, Murphy, Warnock, Yarran 1 | Simpson 3 Waite, Garlett, Laidler, Curnow, Carrazzo, Murphy, Warnock, Yarran 1 | Goals | 2 Jetta, Lonergan 1 Hurley, Bellchambers, Watson, Fletcher, Zaharakis, Stanton, Melksham | 2 Jetta, Lonergan 1 Hurley, Bellchambers, Watson, Fletcher, Zaharakis, Stanton, Melksham |
| Murphy, Waite, Gibbs, Yarran, Robinson, Jaminson, Judd, Scotland | Murphy, Waite, Gibbs, Yarran, Robinson, Jaminson, Judd, Scotland | Best | Fletcher, Hooker, Zaharakis, Watson, Hardingham, Stanton | Fletcher, Hooker, Zaharakis, Watson, Hardingham, Stanton |
| Nil | Nil | Injuries | Winderlich (knee), Dempsey (knee) | Winderlich (knee), Dempsey (knee) |
| The draw between Carlton and Essendon was the third of the season, and the third between the two sides since 1993. It also means that four of the last 12 games played at the MCG were drawn, and it is the first time since 1914 that there were three draws in the first four rounds of the season. ||||||
| | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes |
| 3 Dustin Fletcher (Essendon) 2 Nick Duigan (Carlton) 1 Marc Murphy (Carlton) ||||||

#### Round 5

| | Round 5 | Round 5 | Round 5 | | |
| Monday, 25 April 2:40 pm | Essendon | def. by | Collingwood | MCG (crowd: 89,626) | Report |
| | 0.3 (3) 3.8 (26) 7.10 (52) 11.11 (77) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 4.2 (26) 7.3 (45) 10.6 (66) 16.11 (107) | Umpires: Chamberlain, Ryan, Findlay Television broadcast: Channel 10 and One HD | Umpires: Chamberlain, Ryan, Findlay Television broadcast: Channel 10 and One HD |
| Crameri 4 Hille, Zaharakis 2 Bellchambers, Watson, Jetta 1 | Crameri 4 Hille, Zaharakis 2 Bellchambers, Watson, Jetta 1 | Goals | 3 Cloke, Pendlebury 2 Beams, Dawes 1 Swan, Jolly, Didak, Ball, Brown, Sidebottom | 3 Cloke, Pendlebury 2 Beams, Dawes 1 Swan, Jolly, Didak, Ball, Brown, Sidebottom |
| Crameri, Heppell, Fletcher, Jetta, Bellchambers | Crameri, Heppell, Fletcher, Jetta, Bellchambers | Best | Pendlebury, Cloke, Davis, Shaw, Ball | Pendlebury, Cloke, Davis, Shaw, Ball |
| | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes |
| 3 Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood) 2 Stewart Crameri (Essendon) 1 Travis Cloke (Collingwood) ||||||
| | Anzac Medal | Anzac Medal | Anzac Medal |
| Scott Pendlebury ||||||

#### Round 6

| | Round 6 | Round 6 | Round 6 | | |
| Sunday, 1 May 1:10 pm | Essendon | def. | Gold Coast | Etihad Stadium (crowd: 33,710) | Report |
| | 15.4 (94) 18.4 (112) 25.8 (158) 31.11 (197) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 0.1 (1) 5.3 (33) 7.5 (47) 8.10 (58) | Umpires: Ritchie, Ryan, Nicholls Television broadcast: Fox Sports | Umpires: Ritchie, Ryan, Nicholls Television broadcast: Fox Sports |
| Reimers 8 Monfries, Crameri 4 Ryder 3 Bellchambers, Lonergan, Zaharakis 2 Hille, Hocking, Howlett, Jetta, Stanton, Watson 1 | Reimers 8 Monfries, Crameri 4 Ryder 3 Bellchambers, Lonergan, Zaharakis 2 Hille, Hocking, Howlett, Jetta, Stanton, Watson 1 | Goals | 2 Iles, Matera 1 McKenzie, Rischitelli, Shaw, Smith | 2 Iles, Matera 1 McKenzie, Rischitelli, Shaw, Smith |
| Reimers, Howlett, Watson, Lonergan, Ryder, Stanton, Zaharakis | Reimers, Howlett, Watson, Lonergan, Ryder, Stanton, Zaharakis | Best | Ablett, Brennan, Swallow, Iles, Harbrow | Ablett, Brennan, Swallow, Iles, Harbrow |
| Essendon's first quarter score of 15.4 (94) was the highest first quarter score of all time. Essendon's first quarter score of 15.4 (94) was the highest scoring of any quarter since 1919. Essendon's final score of 31.11 (197) was its highest since 2000, and its final winning margin of 139 points was its highest since 1989. Set Essendon's new largest winning margin at Docklands Stadium ||||||
| | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes | Brownlow Votes |
| 3 Kyle Reimers (Essendon) 2 Jobe Watson (Essendon) 1 Ben Howlett (Essendon) ||||||

## Ladder

2011 AFL ladder :
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | D | PF | PA | PP | Pts | |
| 1 | Collingwood | 22 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 2592 | 1546 | 167.7 | 80 | Finals series |
| 2 | Geelong (P) | 22 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 2548 | 1619 | 157.4 | 76 | Finals series |
| 3 | Hawthorn | 22 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 2355 | 1634 | 144.1 | 72 | Finals series |
| 4 | West Coast | 22 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 2235 | 1715 | 130.3 | 68 | Finals series |
| 5 | Carlton | 22 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 2225 | 1700 | 130.9 | 58 | Finals series |
| 6 | St Kilda | 22 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 1891 | 1677 | 112.8 | 50 | Finals series |
| 7 | Sydney | 22 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 1897 | 1735 | 109.3 | 50 | Finals series |
| 8 | Essendon | 22 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 2217 | 2217 | 100.0 | 46 | Finals series |
| 9 | North Melbourne | 22 | 10 | 12 | 0 | 2106 | 2082 | 101.2 | 40 | |
| 10 | Western Bulldogs | 22 | 9 | 13 | 0 | 2060 | 2155 | 95.6 | 36 | |
| 11 | Fremantle | 22 | 9 | 13 | 0 | 1791 | 2155 | 83.1 | 36 | |
| 12 | Richmond | 22 | 8 | 13 | 1 | 2069 | 2396 | 86.4 | 34 | |
| 13 | Melbourne | 22 | 8 | 13 | 1 | 1974 | 2315 | 85.3 | 34 | |
| 14 | Adelaide | 22 | 7 | 15 | 0 | 1742 | 2193 | 79.4 | 28 | |
| 15 | Brisbane Lions | 22 | 4 | 18 | 0 | 1814 | 2240 | 81.0 | 16 | |
| 16 | Port Adelaide | 22 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 1718 | 2663 | 64.5 | 12 | |
| 17 | Gold Coast | 22 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 1534 | 2726 | 56.3 | 12 | |

### Ladder progression

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| Ground | H | A | A | A | H | H | H | A | A | B | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | H | H | A | A | H | B |
| Result | W | L | W | D | L | W | W | W | L | | L | L | L | L | W | W | W | L | L | W | W | L | W | |
| Position | 1 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 |

## Tribunal cases

| Player | Round | Charge category | Level | Verdict | Points | Result | Victim | Club |
| Mark Williams | NAB Cup | Striking | 2 | Guilty | 70 | Reprimand | Liam Jurrah | Melbourne |
| Cale Hooker | 3 | Wrestling | | Guilty | 0 | $900 | Nick Riewoldt | St Kilda |
| Nathan Lovett-Murray | 7 | Negligent Umpire Contact | | Guilty | 0 | $900 | Mathew Leppard | |

## Season Statistics
### Home attendance

| Round | Opponent | Attendance |
| 1 | Western Bulldogs | 42,617 |
| 5 | Collingwood | 89,626 |
| 6 | Gold Coast | 33,710 |
| 7 | West Coast | 33,631 |
| 11 | Melbourne | 53,077 |
| 13 | North Melbourne | 42,329 |
| 15 | Geelong | 43,806 |
| 16 | Richmond | 55,442 |
| 18 | Carlton | 74,123 |
| 20 | Sydney | 38,722 |
| 23 | Port Adelaide | 34,849 |
| Total Attendance | Total Attendance | 541,932 |
| Average Attendance | Average Attendance | 49,267 |

## Season Financials

Annual Report 2011
| Item | $ (AUD) |
| Revenue | $51,416,731 |
| Membership & Reserved Seating | $10,363,690 |
| Gate Receipts | $963,101 |
| Marketing Revenue | $15,532,108 |
| Merchandise Revenue | $2,563,026 |
| Football Department Spend | $18,510,078 |
| Operating Profit/Loss | $1,024,086 |
| Total Profit/Loss | $2,059,379 |