The Bombers surprised everyone in 2021 by sneaking into finals on the back of a strong finish. Led by performances from their midfield stars, the emergence of a new crop made them the buzz team last year.
The real challenge now comes with the weight of expectation. An undoubtedly talented list will now look to push on to another level. Last year proved to be the season we saw Darcy Parish establish himself as a superstar of the competition.
His stunning year was capped off by rightly being named in the All-Australian team and a top-five Brownlow finish with 26 votes. With Parish ably aided by the likes of Jake Stringer, Zach Merrett, Jordan Ridley, Andy McGrath and Nick Hind, the core talent is strong.
More exciting perhaps is the young contingent coming through. The likes of Nik Cox, Archie Perkins and Harrison Jones announced themselves in 2021 and will look to kick on this year.
While the lack of depth at key positions is a concern, the club will be hoping another year of development will present new options. Having not won a final in over 6000 days, they will be keen to banish that demon once and for all.
Off-Season Moves
Ins: Jake Kelly (Adelaide), Ben Hobbs (pick 13), Alistair Lord (Pick 46), Garrett McDonagh (Pick 50), Patrick Voss (Rookie Draft Pick 9), Tex Wanganeen (SSP), Nick Martin (SSP)
Outs: Patrick Ambrose (Retired), Ned Cahill (Delisted), Marty Gleeson (Delisted), Cale Hooker (Retired), Lachie Johnson (Delisted), Sam McQuillan (Retired), Irving Mosquito (Delisted), David Zaharakis (Delisted)
Defining Period
Rounds 13-16
These rounds shape as crucial to the Bombers Finals hopes. They play Carlton, St Kilda, West Coast and Sydney. While it's not yet known how many of these are home games, what is likely is that these are the teams they'll be competing against for a place in the top eight.
In 2021, they lost to Sydney twice, smashed St Kilda, beat West Coast in Perth, and lost to Carlton. This year, the Bombers have a very real chance of beating off four of these clubs. Should they manage this, their chances of playing Finals become much better.
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Both games against the Swans in 2021 were close, so there's every reason to believe they can beat them in 2022. While the Blues present an old rival they'll be keen to knock off, following a narrow loss in 2021.
The Saints are a team they will fancy themselves against, after they destroyed them on the scoreboard and from an effort perspective in last year. Finally, the Eagles will be another team they hold no fear against following the watershed win in Perth last season.
There's every reason to believe the Bombers can win these four crunch games and set themselves up for a crack at a Finals spot.
