AFL round 12 2026, scores, results, odds, stats and start time from Optus Stadium

Essendon failed to get the new manager’s boost in his first game under interim coach Dean Solomon after West Coast edged the Bombers to a 30-point win in rainy and windy conditions at Optus Stadium.

With the wind in favor of one team, the Eagles kept up with the wind in the third quarter and scored the first five goals of the second half, increasing the difference to 53 points.

From then on, the outcome was a foregone conclusion.

After Solomon moved to send struggling defender Ben McKay forward, the Bombers hung in there for the first quarter and a half, with Eagles main man Reuben Ginbey denying Essendon goalscoring opportunities.

Essendon trailed by just 16 points at quarter-time but pulled back to a one-point lead after scoring the first two goals of the second quarter.

However, they were unable to continue their run as the Eagles midfield, led by Harley Reid, roused their team.

Reid was amazing; He displayed an authoritative stance and put pressure on young and old around the ball, creating opportunities that would lead to a player competing for goal of the year in the first half.

At this point the Bombers were in the game despite suffering another injury when Archer May suffered a game-ending shoulder injury that he dislocated while bravely flying for a marker.

But even before the ball was cleared in the third quarter, opposition striker Milan Murdock won a free kick on 50 minutes and scored to open the floodgates.

Jake Waterman was also very successful in scoring three goals in 50 minutes while playing like a Harlem Globetrotter.

The Bombers defense had no answer as the ball got inside the 50 so quickly.

Zach Merrett and Darcy Parish tried hard, took possession of the ball, but could not make much of an impact on a team that lost 664 games of experience during the week due to injury and was able to replace them with five young players with only 177 games of experience.

Merrett finished the game with one goal and 28 tackles, establishing himself as the Bombers’ best player despite his sometimes wayward fielding.

The dream win didn’t materialize, but Reid and Duursma got a glimpse of what it might be like to make good picks at No. 1 on the team as they went wild.

Essendon need to get the coach selection and early selection right and then get to work. We hope the next win is not too far away.