There's nothing like stinking it up on the big stage to make reality hit home. And there's been few reality checks as savage as Essendon was handed on Anzac Day.
The Bombers' 77-point capitulation to Collingwood would actually have hurt less had it come three weeks earlier. But the Dons had dared allow themselves just a little optimism after an impressive win over Melbourne and, if anything an even better performance in a narrow loss to Gold Coast.
It made the belting an even more stark downturn. And this humiliation was brutal, so bad that even that whopping margin actually may not have done Collingwood justice.
There were always going to be days like it this season, of course, with Essendon rebuilding, its list the second-youngest and second least-experienced in the competition. But this was a smashing which delivered a more bitter pill than merely the size of the loss.
That bad medicine was the driving home of the inescapable truth that it's the players Essendon most needs performing who are letting the side down most.
The Bombers' paucity of leadership is hardly a revelation, but appeared more stark than ever on Anzac Day as 38-year-old Scott Pendlebury ran amok and Nick Daicos did his usual damage.
Not for the first time this season, it was 20-year-old Archie Roberts, in his 34th AFL game, who carried much of the load for Essendon, finishing a wretched day for the club with 42 disposals.
Three of the four next highest for the Dons on the disposal count were their three most experienced hands -- former skipper Zach Merrett, current skipper Andy McGrath, and Darcy Parish -- who collectively shared close to 70 touches, but tellingly, possessions accumulated and distributed with precious little impact.
That, unfortunately, has been a career-long issue for McGrath and Parish. And while the former at least has the mantle of captaincy to help impact on his teammates on the track as well as on game day, Parish can no longer be given the injury card excuse for under-performance.
His All-Australian season was five years ago. One truly great season out of 11 isn't a convincing argument that ultimately, he's proved not much more than average AFL talent.
Of equal, or perhaps even more concern still, though, is (and it's becoming a recurring theme) the muted performances of Jye Caldwell and Sam Durham, two of Essendon's previously most reliable "grunt" players, who shared only 30 touches between them against the Pies.
That pair until this season would have, along with Merrett, been classed as the Bombers' most reliable. Both have gone backwards significantly.
Down back, meanwhile, high-priced recruit Ben McKay continued to underwhelm in terms of leadership, physical presence, anything really. Worse, far from grow alongside the former Roo's example, another key position defender Zach Reid appears to be regressing.
Then there are two of the Bombers' biggest conundrums -- Peter Wright and Kyle Langford.
Wright far too often is chocolates or boiled lollies. The recent Essendon upsurge has been notable for Wright's improved showing as a ruckman. But his effort against the Pies was one of his worst, smashed not just by Darcy Cameron, but by a five-gamer in Oscar Steene.
He's been around 12 seasons now, but too often looks like it's 12 games, confidence dictating his entire performance way too often for a player of that size and capability. Wright was so shot mentally by the time he managed a couple of shots at goal in the third quarter on Saturday you just knew he was going to miss.
Langford? Well, Anzac Day was an unhappy anniversary for the now 29-year-old 170-gamer. On the same occasion two years ago, he missed a chance to win the game for the Dons from 30 metres out. He'd already kicked four that day and four bags of three or more early that season. Yes, he's had injuries, but he's also really never been the same player since.
Most of that group had played well in the Melbourne win and the narrow Suns loss. There was an argument, though, that even then it was the performance of the fresher Bomber faces who really set the tone.
Against Melbourne, it was Roberts' boundless ball-winning ability, but significantly, also Isaac Kako's pressure and some composure from Jacob Farrow.
And in both games, Elijah Tsatas and Archer Day-Wicks had an energy which immediately made their team look sharper, quicker, just more alive; certainly a far cry from the listless bedraggled Essendon of the first few rounds of this season.
With the likes of Merrett and Parish firing in tandem as well, the Bombers suddenly looked there was enough talent spread far enough to stretch opponents.
Even when the Dons were yet to be blown away on Saturday, you still felt what life there was, was coming from the less-experienced types, Roberts of course, but also Day-Wicks again and Saad El-Hawli starting to find his feet.
They're the types of players who will help shape Essendon's future. They'll have their down days, that's a given.
What has to be a non-negotiable, however, for any young team making its way, is that its senior core can be relied upon for consistent output. And that hasn't been the case at The Hangar for some time.
Essendon's senior players are too often either injured, hot and cold, or just out of sorts altogether. And if that sounds harsh, it's only because the Bombers' younger brigade is making the contrast impossible to ignore.
No one expects first and second-year players to be the emotional barometer every week. They're supposed to provide flashes, moments, enthusiasm, and hope. The older hands are meant to provide stability, standards, and certainty.
At Essendon right now, it too often feels the other way around.
You can read more of Rohan Connolly's work at FOOTYOLOGY.
