Bombers amped for Adelaide return after Power failure

Essendon were stung by external criticism after their meek surrender to Port Adelaide a fortnight ago and will relish their return to the scene of the crime, defender Andrew McGrath says.

The Bombers were blown away in a Power blitz at Adelaide Oval during Gather Round, smashed in the centre square throughout a 69-point hiding.

But they bounced back in strong fashion last week to score a resounding 29-point triumph over long-time tormentors the Western Bulldogs.

McGrath admitted criticism had been a driving factor in Essendon’s on-field response, which in turn has buoyed Brad Scott’s men ahead of an important round-six clash with Adelaide on Friday night.

The Bombers took hard lessons from their Adelaide Oval thrashing by Port Adelaide. (Matt Turner/AAP PHOTOS)

“Yeah, it (the criticism) hurts. I’d be lying if I said you exclude everything (that gets said),” McGrath told AAP.

“Things do come across your desk and you do feel the disappointment from our fans.

“But the best thing that we can do is get back on the horse and train hard through the week and learn from both wins and losses.”

The Crows clash will be Essendon’s first at Adelaide Oval since the Power debacle, and the Bombers’ third-straight fixture under Friday night lights.

“It will be nice to get back on Adelaide Oval and bring the style of footy we saw (against the Bulldogs) and see how we go,” McGrath said.

“Adelaide are another unique challenge and we’re super excited by the prospect of going over there on a Friday night again.

“I’ve played a few of them (Friday night games) in my time but not as many as the bigger clubs.

“But it’s cool to be the only game on and we want to be playing in these games more often and challenging ourselves against the best teams.”

Essendon’s midfield in particular came under intense scrutiny after the Port Adelaide loss, having been trounced 19-6 in centre clearances, but restored some pride in a hard-fought win against the Bulldogs and their high-powered engine room.

It was McGrath’s first personal triumph in eight attempts against the Bulldogs, who had won nine of the previous 10 contests between the sides.

And it has given the Bombers’ plenty of belief as they seek to build on their 3-2 record in pursuit of a finals berth.

Defender Andrew McGrath (r) gives credit to the Bombers’ midfield for the win over the Bulldogs. (James Ross/AAP PHOTOS)

“It was a bit of a scrap. Historically we’ve played in those games and the Doggies have got on top of us,” McGrath said.

“When the game was there to be won we really stood up in the midfield and took it to them in there and got the ball heading forward.

“We were able to lock the ball in our forward half with real pressure and then the scoreboard came off the back of that.”