Essendon put woes behind them by winning season opener.
Essendon coach James Hird says he didn't use the summer drugs scandal to motivate his players last night. Source: Getty Images
ESSENDON'S ability to overcome adversity has grown in the AFL club's darkest days, coach James Hird says.
Hird says his Bombers' season-opening victory against Adelaide isn't a direct response to the drugs investigation enveloping the club.
He says the drugs saga wasn't used as motivation for their stunning 35-point away triumph against the Crows on Friday night.
"It would be too simplistic to say that game was won on emotion," Hird said.
"The level of training and standard of training that the Essendon players have been able to produce through this investigation has been of an elite level.
"It has surprised me and I was very proud of the way they played.
"We did not have to mention the investigation before the game or during the week - it gets mentioned (by others) every day.
"We didn't say we wanted to win because of this.
"We want to be a good football team, and this (investigation) will pass.
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"There is a long way to go in the investigation and we will come out of the end of it as a good football team when that finishes."
Hird hailed the resilience of his players for their ability to weather the ongoing drugs storm.
"You expect that to come over time but an event like the one we have had may have hastened that ability to handle adversity," he said.
"It was a special performance for many reasons."
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The Bombers had slipped behind early, with Adelaide leading 22-0 after 11 minutes.
But Essendon then kicked 18 goals to eight, with Ben Howlett a standout with four goals, 25 disposals and six tackles.
Captain Jobe Watson collected a game-high 34 disposals while his midfield colleagues Brent Stanton (26 possessions) and Dyson Heppell (23 touches) were influential.
Essendon's next match is an MCG encounter against Melbourne on April 6.
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