‘It wouldn’t be at the top of our list’: Essendon duo downplay club’s rivalry with North Melbourne - Fox Sports

North coach Rhyce Shaw in May also had a gentle dig about sharing a Sydney-bound plane with the Bombers ahead of Round 2, saying: “It’s not ideal, especially with that team, but we’ll just see how we go.” While the comment was laughed off, Roos legend Glenn Archer said told the Herald Sun the rivalry was real, admitting he hated Essendon so much that he refused to mention the name of the club.

“It’s a bit of a rivalry built up from them, but for us it’s another game,” Smith told Channel 7 post-game.

Devon Smith: “It is a bit of a rivalry build up for them, but for us it’s just another game.” #AFLDonsNorth pic.twitter.com/yDKbQkSvuk.

“We knew it was going to be contested game,” Worsfold said post-game

Despite their fourth straight loss, Shaw said there were glimpses of the team’s ideal style

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