DARCY Parish and Zach Merrett ran riot as Essendon produced a dominant first half to lay the groundwork for a comfortable 72-point win over North Melbourne.
The Bombers set the tone early and while they fell marginally short of coach Ben Rutten’s stated aim to piece together a consistent four quarters, they were never seriously challenged.
Out-of-contract midfielders Parish (36 disposals and 11 clearances) and Merrett (31 and two) underlined their value in stellar performances alongside Andrew McGrath (31 and five).
Peter Wright, Harrison Jones and Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti (three each) were among seven multiple goal-kickers for Essendon in the 22.9 (141) to 10.9 (69) win at Marvel Stadium.
It gave the Bombers consecutive victories for the first time under Rutten and improved their season record to 4-6, leaving them just one win outside the top eight.
A horror day for the Kangaroos seemed like it got worse when star ruckman Todd Goldstein went down with a right ankle injury moments before three-quarter time.
Goldstein twisted the joint as he landed from a centre bounce ruck contest and was immediately helped off the field, but was assessed in the changeroom and reappeared for the final term.
Nick Larkey limped off with a similar complaint in the final quarter and returned after a brief stint on the sidelines.
North had entered the match brimming with new-found confidence, invigorated by their first win of the season against Hawthorn in round nine.
But they were blitzed early when Merrett stamped his authority with 14 disposals as Essendon piled on six first-quarter goals.
The Bombers were in the zone at both ends, with Jones snapping a superb goal from the pocket and Nick Hind setting the bar for desperation with a chase-down on Cam Zurhaar that prevented a certain goal.
Cam Zurhaar took a huge mark when he climbed onto Laverde’s back on the wing and plucked another minutes later close to goal as North enjoyed a brief patch of ascendancy in general play during the third quarter.
Wright left the field under the blood rule with a cut above his left eye from Goldstein’s attempted spoil late in the match.
Taylor Garner kicked three goals for North and Ben Cunnington finished with 34 disposals and nine clearances.
Essendon faces a tough trip to Perth in round 11 to face West Coast, while North is back at Marvel Stadium to take on St Kilda.
(C) AAP 2021
ESSENDON 6.4 11.5 15.6 22.9 (141)
NORTH MELBOURNE 2.1 3.3 8.8 10.9 (69)
Goals: Essendon: A McDonald-Tipungwuti 3 H Jones 3 P Wright 3 A Waterman 2 C Hooker 2 K Langford 2 N Cox 2 A Perkins A Phillips D Zaharakis N Hind W Snelling. North Melbourne: T Garner 3 T Campbell 2 T Thomas 2 B Cunnington C Zurhaar J Walker.
Umpires: Craig Fleer, Leigh Fisher, Cameron Dore.
Official Crowd: 33,121 at Marvel Stadium.
