Coach Brad Scott is confident Essendon are reaping the rewards of taking a patient approach to Jake Stringer after the dynamic forward exploded to life to lead the Bombers to victory against GWS.
Stringer missed the opening round to build fitness after a pre-season hamstring injury, then spent a week in the VFL before returning to the AFL last week.
Against the Giants at Marvel Stadium on Sunday, Stringer kicked 4.6, including an awesome fourth-quarter torpedo on the run to help the wasteful Bombers seal an 11.22 (88) to 11.9 (75) victory and a 3-1 start to the season.
"I never feel the need to be vindicated but we just felt like it was the right approach. That doesn't guarantee you anything but it just sets him up to give him every chance," Scott told reporters.
"We've just been really consistent with getting guys fit and giving them the best chance to play well.
"The thing with Jake is all eyes are on him so I don't think it's fair to these guys to put them out when they're 50 per cent and just open them up to criticism and more importantly, letting the team down because they can't do what we know they can.
"It was just a matter of getting him back to the best possible shape we could."
Scott delighted in Stringer's body work in contests but was particularly pleased with how the oft-maligned forward defended.
"Jake had 10 shots at goal so he was pretty lively but I was really happy with his ability to fall into our team defence today. I asked for a big effort from him in that space and he did it really well," he said.
"It's amazing - it's a really good one for him if he doesn't already know, and I think he does, that you can focus on that defensive part of the game and still have 10 shots at goal."
Essendon made a bizarre late change, dropping ex-skipper Dyson Heppell, whose form had been under scrutiny, for ruckman Andrew Phillips and making Heppell the substitute.
Heppell entered the fray in the second quarter when Sam Weideman had to leave the game with concussion after he was clattered by Nick Haynes in an aerial contest.
The Bombers appeared in danger of letting Sunday's clash slip after an ugly opening half in which they kicked just three goals along with 10 behinds and five shots that missed altogether.
But they settled in the third quarter and despite a fourth-quarter fade-out, condemned the Giants to a 1-3 start.
Brilliant Giants ball-winner Tom Green (34 touches) was typically prolific and Josh Kelly (28 touches, two goals) was excellent, while Harry Himmelberg kicked three goals and Haynes was busy down back.
Coach Adam Kingsley believed Kelly was "back to playing some of his best footy" but lamented his charges' overall intent.
"We were pretty ordinary today," Kingsley told reporters.
"We didn't hunt the ball like the Bombers, we didn't work like the Bombers and when you're falling short on those basic fundamentals, you find the scoreboard reading the way it does."
