4 players were acquired during the trade period, 3 of them via free agency and 1 via trade.
Ben McKay the big signing.
Standing at 202cm, 104kg and with 71 games of experience to the age of 26, Ben will be looking to prove multiple points, for himself and for the team.
Recruited at pick 21 in the 2015 national draft by North Melbourne, Ben has played 56 out of a possible 67 games in the last 3 seasons, 19 of those last year after only playing 15 in an interrupted 2022.
During his time with North Melbourne, he only played in 8 wins under the guidance of 6 different coaches, mainly playing in an area of the ground that was consistently under pressure with opposition entries and being matched up against key forwards, holding his own when required.
Like most players who make the switch to a new team, Ben will be looking to rubber stamp the decision he and Essendon made by filling a role that the team has desperately needed for years now.
In 2023, key forwards dined out on the match up they were presented with against Essendon.
Tom Hawkins kicking a total 13 goals from his 18 shots, all while taking 18 marks inside 50 from the 2 games.
Charlie Dixon had 16 disposals inside forward 50, 8 marks and 3 goals in his 2 games.
Joe Daniher kicked 6 goals to go with his 5 marks inside 50, all this from just 7 disposals in that area.
Oscar Allen would kick 4 goals of WCE 6 goals at Optus Stadium, all from 4 marks and 7 disposals inside 50.
Ben's now old teammate Nick Larkey, in the 2 games against Essendon, totalled 11 shots at goal of his 15 disposals inside 50 while also taking 9 marks.
Luke Jackson spent time forward for Fremantle having an impact with 7 disposals inside 50 and 4 shots at goal.
Sydney's Joel Amarty stands at 100kg and after only playing in his 24th game, has 6 disposals inside 50 from 6 marks which resulted in 5 shots at goal.
And finally, Jesse Hogan has 16 disposals inside 50, takes 9 marks, has 10 shots at goal and registers 9 goals for the game in round 23.
They're horrifying numbers.
Just halving those would make a major impact.
So Ben comes with arms wide open.
Firstly to match up to power forwards head to head, but with the bonus of intercepting the delivery to his opponent either by bringing the ball to ground or marking it himself.
Over his time with North Melbourne he's had to change and adapt with the constant changes in coaching which has flowed onto the set up, system and game plan.
It has been a 1 versus 1 defence at time.
A charge up and close the space defence & recently, a full zone defence as of early 2023 when Clarkson arrives.
Ultimately it's a defensive set up too advanced for where North Melbourne are at.
During the season, Clarkson takes time away from the club and Brett Ratten takes over in the meantime, streamlining the defensive system, it's now 1 versus 1 down back again, a simpler game plan for the team.
It looked to suit the players.
No longer were they caught in two minds between space and an opponent.
To my eye Ben got caught between standing back shoulder to his opponent, and coming up to take space when the opposition was making its way forward.
A lot of that falls back to confidence.
If you're going to come forward, there cannot be any hesitation, it's a split second decision, yes or no.
Zoning on the last line is reliant on what's happening up ahead.
If you're winning the territory battle and /or if there's pressure on the ball use from your teammates, you can take the aggressive positioning in front of your opponent to "press up" and make the ground feel smaller than it actually is.
My expectation of Essendon in 2024 and going forward is a major improvement in the middle of the ground, with the flow on effect being felt by the backline.
I'm hoping to see "dirty" and "slower" ball movement through the middle of the ground.
Achieved by having more players in the middle third to flood that area causing stoppages as well as putting the opposition under more pressure.
Dirtier because it's a harder area to get uncontested possessions and find free space, and slower because the opposition now looks ahead for targets and sees McKay, Reid and Ridley who can compete in the air and take the ball away from them.
As much as we expect McKay to be that intercepting strong impassable defender, it's the combination of him, Reid and Ridley working together in the air with groundball defenders, such as McGrath and Redman that will be the difference.
We can't expect ONE player to make THE difference.
Harris Andrews was able to go from averaging 2.3 intercept marks a game, ranked equal 13th in 2022, to 3.5, ranked equal 4th in 2023, mostly off the back of having Jack Payne playing 23 games instead of 12 the previous year.
Andrews also went from 6.3 intercept possessions to 13.8.
He knows he's got support by his side and can take aggressive positioning on his opponent.
In 2022, Jordan Ridley averaged 2.2 intercept marks a game with 5.8 intercept possessions.
2023, 2.3 and again 5.8.
Ben McKay in 2022 averaged 4.1 intercept marks and 6.5 intercept possessions.
2023 he has 3.8 and 7.1
Unfortunately there's no meaningful data available on Zach Reid to know his base right now, but knowing he's got the support near him will allow him to learn on the job and learn with confidence.
This combination will take time to be fluid together, to know each others strengths and have the confidence to cover for each and get to the right areas consistently, we can't expect instant results.
Don't get caught by the media or the socials if the results aren't instant.
Don't also get caught up by McKay's disposal numbers, he's not a high possession defender.
He won't get 30 disposals like James Sicily.
He's not a controller of the football.
You won't see him play on from a mark, take 3 bounces running from defence like Darcy Moore.
He's not a rebound defender.
Instead he'll give it off to Ridley, McGrath, Redman and players who can create "bounce" from that area.
Another reason as to why the combination is more important than the individual.
His work is done in contest.
Considering what North Melbourne have been like in recent times, he's had to stand up to a barrage of opposition attacks.
The 2023 average of 58.4 opposition inside 50s, the second most, doesn't tell enough, it's how it made its way there that is the story for him.
26 less disposals week in, the second worst differential, with 22.9 of them being by foot.
Add to those the oppositions kicking effectiveness of 67.9%, ranked 17th, and you can now see how much pressure the defenders were under.
But under that heat, he was able to hold his head up.
Here's a comparison of McKay's key performance indicators against similar players.
Of 58 AFL categorised Key Defenders who played 7 or more games in 2023, McKay was ranked 12th for the least amount of possessions between intercepts.
Sam Taylor, Liam Jones, Esava Ratugolea, Aliir Aliir, Darcy Moore, Alex Pearce, Sam Collins, Nathan Murphy, Charlie Ballard, Tyler Young and Jake Lever ranked above him.
Of those 11, only Taylor took more intercept marks a game, 3.80 versus 3.78.
Of those same 11, only Taylor and Pearce took a larger percentage of their marks from intercept.
And lastly, Ben averaged an intercept mark every 1.86 intercept possessions, that's ranked number one of all 58 Key Defenders in 2023.
I'm sure Brad Scott being a past coach at North Melbourne had a major say in Ben choosing Essendon over other options.
I would expect he sees a growth in the team and himself and wants to be on that journey together with someone he trusts and feels can maximise that potential.
It will take a little learning to begin with, but I expect both Ben and the team to complement each other in the long run.
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