Editing Essendon Football Club (section)

== Rivalries ==

Essendon's biggest rivals are {{AFL Car}}, {{AFL Ric}}, and {{AFL Col}}, as these teams and Essendon are the four biggest and most supported clubs in Victoria. Matches between the clubs are often close regardless of form and ladder positions. If out of the race themselves, all four have the desire to deny the others a finals spot or a premiership. Essendon also has a fierce rivalry with Hawthorn, stemming from excessive on-field violence in the 1980s, perhaps reaching its zenith with the infamous [[Line in the sand match|Line in the Sand Match]] in 2004. Additionally, Essendon has a three-decade rivalry with the [[West Coast Eagles]].

* '''{{AFL Car}}''' – [[Carlton–Essendon AFL rivalry|The rivalry between Essendon and Carlton]] is considered one of the strongest in the league. With the teams sharing the record of 16 premierships, both sides are keen to become outright leader, or if out of the finals race, at least ensure the other doesn't. In recent years, the rivalry has thickened, with Carlton beating the 1999 Minor Premiers and premiership favourites by 1 point in the [[1999 AFL First Preliminary Final|Preliminary Final]]. Other notable meetings between the two clubs include the [[1908 VFL Grand Final|1908]], [[1947 VFL Grand Final|1947]], [[1949 VFL season|1949]], [[1962 VFL Grand Final|1962]] and [[1968 VFL Grand Final]]s and [[1993 AFL Grand Final]], with some decided by small margins. Of the 6 Grand Finals played out of the two clubs, Essendon has won 3 and Carlton has won 3.
* '''{{AFL Col}}''' – In the early days of the VFL, this rivalry grew out of several Grand Final meetings: [[1901 VFL Grand Final|1901]], [[1902 VFL season|1902]] and [[1911 VFL Grand Final|1911]]. The teams didn't meet again in a Grand Final until [[1990 AFL Grand Final|1990]] when Collingwood won to draw level with the Bombers on 14 premierships and deny the Bombers a chance to join Carlton with 15 flags. Since 1995, the clubs face off against each other annually in the [[Anzac Day clash]], a match which is described as the second biggest of the season (behind only the Grand Final). Being possibly the two biggest football clubs in Victoria, regardless of their position on the ladder, this game always attracts a huge crowd, and it is a match both teams have a great desire to win regardless of either team's season prospects. The rivalry thickened further in 2023 when Collingwood joined Essendon and Carlton with a record 16 premierships.
* '''{{AFL Ric}}''' – This rivalry stems out of the 1942 Grand Final which Essendon won. In 1974, a half-time brawl took place involving trainers, officials and players at Windy Hill and has become infamous as one of the biggest ever. The teams didn't meet in the finals between 1944 and 1995, but there have been many close margins in home and away season matches as a result of each team's "never say die" attitude and ability to come back from significant margins in the dying stages of matches. Having met in the AFL's ''Rivalry Round'' in ([[2006 AFL Season|2006]] and [[2009 AFL season|2009]]) and meeting in the [[Dreamtime at the 'G]] match since 2005, the rivalry and passion between the clubs and supporters has re-ignited. In recent years the rivalry has been promoted as the "Clash of the Sash".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.essendonfc.com.au/news/2014-08-06/clash-of-the-sash|title=Clash of the Sash|website=essendonfc.com.au|date=6 August 2014 |access-date=29 April 2019}}</ref>
* '''{{AFL Haw}}''' – The two sides had a number of physical encounters in the mid-1980s when they were the top two sides of the competition. The rivalry was exacerbated when [[Dermott Brereton]] ran through Essendon's three-quarter time huddle during a match in 1988 and again by an all in brawl during a match in 2004 allegedly instigated by Brereton (now known as the [[Line in the Sand Match]] after the direction allegedly given by Brereton for the Hawthorn players to make a physical stand). This was reminiscent of the 1980s when battles with Hawthorn were often hard and uncompromising affairs. During Round 22 of the [[2009 AFL season|2009 season]], Essendon and Hawthorn played for the last finals spot up for grabs. The teams played out an extremely physical game and despite being 22 points down at half time Essendon went on to win by 17 points. The game included a brawl shortly after half time sparked by Essendon's captain [[Matthew Lloyd]] knocking out Hawthorn midfielder [[Brad Sewell]], which led Hawthorn's [[Campbell Brown (footballer)|Campbell Brown]], to label Lloyd a 'sniper', and promised revenge if Lloyd played on in 2010.
* '''{{AFL NM}}''' – One of the fiercest rivalries in the AFL can be traced back to [[1896 VFA season|1896]], when several clubs, including Essendon, broke away from the Victorian Football Association to form the Victorian Football League. North sought to join the breakaway competition, but some argue this desire was not realised due to Essendon feeling threatened by North's proximity and the fact their inclusion could drain Essendon of vital talent. More than 100 years later, some North supporters have not forgiven Essendon for the decision and have blamed the Bombers for their small supporter base and gate revenue. North were finally admitted into the VFL in 1925 alongside [[Western Bulldogs|Footscray]] and [[Hawthorn Football Club|Hawthorn]]. In [[1950 VFL Grand Final|1950]], the two sides met in their first and only grand final meeting to date, which Essendon won by 38 points. The rivalry would flare up again in the 1980s. In [[1982 VFL season|1982]], the Krakouer brothers, [[Jim Krakouer|Jim]] and [[Phil Krakouer|Phil]], led the Roos to an Elimination Final win. Essendon had their revenge a year later, winning a Preliminary Final by 86 points. The rivalry was re-ignited in the late 1990s and early 2000s due to the on-field success of the two sides. In preparation for the [[1998 AFL finals series|1998 finals series]], and despite losing six of their last eight to the Roos, legendary Essendon coach [[Kevin Sheedy (Australian footballer)|Kevin Sheedy]] publicly labelled North executives [[Greg Miller (Australian footballer)|Greg Miller]] and [[Mark Dawson (footballer)|Mark Dawson]] soft in response to comments from commentators that his Essendon team was soft. The Kangaroos beat Essendon in the much-hyped encounter that followed (a Qualifying Final), and North fans pelted Sheedy with marshmallows as he left the ground, although Sheedy was seemingly unfazed by the incident, encouraging a "Marshmallow Game" the next year and relishing in the fact that Sheedy's ulterior motive was to build up the game and draw a large crowd, which proved to be correct, drawing in 71,154 people to attend the game.<ref>{{Citation|title=Kevin Sheedy recalls the 'marshmallow' game| date=7 August 2014 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UudntymOuR4| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/UudntymOuR4| archive-date=11 December 2021 | url-status=live|language=en|access-date=25 September 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=BTV: The soft war: Sheedy vs Pagan – May 14, 2015| date=13 May 2015 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y7xK3GnDGA| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/2y7xK3GnDGA| archive-date=11 December 2021 | url-status=live|language=en|access-date=25 September 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In [[2000 AFL season|2000]], the Bombers thrashed North by 125 points in the 1st Qualifying Final. The biggest VFL/AFL comeback of all time occurred between the two teams when Essendon managed to come back from a [[Essendon v Kangaroos (2001 AFL season)|69-point deficit]] to win by 12 points in [[2001 AFL season|2001]]. A meeting of the two rivals at the MCG in the [[2014 AFL finals series]] in the 2nd Elimination Final resulted in North winning by 12 points.
*[[West Coast Eagles|'''West Coast''']] – A three-decade rivalry between the Essendon Bombers and the West Coast Eagles kicked off when Essendon coach [[Kevin Sheedy (Australian footballer)|Kevin Sheedy]] tied the [[windsock]] down on the School End outer terrace so the opposition would not know which way the wind was blowing. Sheedy later said of the incident three decades later, in jest, that it was because the brand sponsor had neglected to pay their account. When West Coast won the toss and kicked against the breeze, it looked as if Sheedy's plan had worked. Nevertheless, West Coast would go on to win by 7 points.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Windy Hill windsock|url=https://www.essendonfc.com.au/news/41680/the-windy-hill-windsock|access-date=23 September 2021|website=essendonfc.com.au|date=30 June 2016 |language=en}}</ref> In his excitement at winning a close match in Round 16, 1993, with ruckman and forward [[Paul Salmon]] kicking a goal 30 seconds before the final siren against the West Coast Eagles (the reigning premiers), Sheedy waved his jacket in the air as he came rushing from the coaches' box. To this day, the supporters of the winning club wave their jackets in the air after the game when the two teams play.<ref>{{Citation|title=Round 16 1993, Essendon vs West Coast Highlights| date=29 September 2009 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sO4ivcNtNIE| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/sO4ivcNtNIE| archive-date=11 December 2021 | url-status=live|language=en|access-date=23 September 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The moment is captured in Jamie Cooper's painting ''the Game That Made Australia'', commissioned by the AFL in 2008 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the sport, with Sheedy shown waving a red, black and yellow jacket rather than a red and black jacket, to reflect Sheedy's support of indigenous footballers.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Game That Made Australia painting – Australian Football 150 Years|url=http://www.150years.com.au/150Moments/150MomentsArticle/tabid/11382/Default_newsId_55972.html|access-date=17 February 2023|website=www.150years.com.au}}</ref> The Bombers would go on to defeat West Coast again later that year in their semi-final clash and take home the [[1993 AFL Grand Final|1993 premiership cup]] a couple of weeks later. Despite Sheedy's typically measured disposition, Sheedy did lose his cool on one occasion in 2000. In yet another game against the Eagles, Sheedy was fined $7,500 by the tribunal after making a cut-throat gesture to then-Eagle [[Mitchell White (footballer, born 1973)|Mitchell White]] during the half-time break of the Essendon–West Coast clash in Round 15, 2000, also apparently mouthing the words "You... are... fucked!" to White.<ref>{{Cite web|date=4 August 2002|title=Bombers' chief furious at AFL|url=https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/bombers-chief-furious-at-afl-20020804-gdugn6.html|access-date=23 September 2021|website=The Age|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2 May 2011|title=Top moments – Sheedy threatens to kill|url=https://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/eagles-v-essendon-moments---kevin-sheedy-v-mitchell-white-ng-75afcfcbcc67aafc464571225406bf1f|access-date=23 September 2021|website=PerthNow|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=Round 15 2000, Essendon vs West Coast Highlights| date=30 August 2020 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWh3vOQq08s| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/RWh3vOQq08s| archive-date=11 December 2021 | url-status=live|language=en|access-date=23 September 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In a famous game in 2004, with 35 seconds remaining and the scores deadlocked at 131 points apiece, Essendon legend [[James Hird]] swooped on a loose ball in the right forward pocket and snapped a match-winning goal with his 15th possession for the quarter, famously hugging an Essendon supporter in the crowd in a moment of jubilation after being fined $20,000 earlier in the week for criticising umpire [[Scott McLaren]].<ref>{{Citation|title='Hird, the fairytale is complete!' {{!}} Bombers v Eagles, 2004 {{!}} AAMI Classic Last Two Mins {{!}} AFL| date=20 March 2018 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWMeXJ9iafw|language=en|access-date=23 September 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=20 years of Docklands: 20 best moments|url=https://www.essendonfc.com.au/news/573814/20-years-of-docklands-20-best-moments|access-date=23 September 2021|website=essendonfc.com.au|date=8 March 2020 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=27 April 2015|title=Fox Footy's Chooseday Night football airs Essendon v West Coast from 2004|url=https://foxsports.com.au/afl/teams/fox-footys-chooseday-night-football-airs-essendon-v-west-coast-from-2004/news-story/318ce4a1ed5f5784ed40d7a0620e363d|access-date=23 September 2021|website=Fox Sports|language=en}}</ref> Full-forward [[Matthew Lloyd]] also kicked eight goals during the game to net three [[Brownlow Medal|Brownlow]] votes.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Top 10 individual Round 3 performances of the last 20 years|url=https://www.sen.com.au/news/2020/04/02/top-10-individual-round-3-performances-of-the-last-20-years|access-date=23 September 2021|website=www.sen.com.au|language=en}}</ref> Despite Hird's incredible individual effort, and to the consternation of fans and the audience of the [[2004 Brownlow Medal|2004 Brownlow medal count]], he did not receive any [[Brownlow Medal]] votes from the umpires for his 34 disposals and clutch goals, which some have speculated was in retribution for his tirade against umpire McLaren.<ref name="judd-brownlow">{{Cite news|date=21 September 2004|title=Judd claims West Coast's first Brownlow|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|url=http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/21/1095651257787.html|access-date=16 March 2009}}</ref>