ESSENDON'S provisional move into finals territory on Saturday night won't distract it from the task at hand, coach John Worsfold says.

Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti's fourth goal of the game in the final 30 seconds helped the Bombers post a dramatic five-point victory over North Melbourne that vaulted them inside the top eight.

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They've now won three straight matches by 10 points or fewer and five of their past six overall to ensure they will be part of the run to qualify for finals.

Dual All Australian defender Michael Hurley's game-ending AC joint injury early in the third quarter was the sole blemish on an otherwise pleasing day at Essendon's Marvel Stadium office.


Hurley was collected hard by young Kangaroo Cameron Zurhaar and immediately clutched his shoulder before leaving the ground.

The Bombers have absorbed serious scrutiny from Worsfold down, especially after starting the season with a thumping loss to Greater Western Sydney and a shock defeat to St Kilda.

BOMBERS IN THE EIGHT Full match coverage and stats

From a 3-5 opening, they now boast nine wins from 16 matches, but the coach showed typical restraint post-game.

"Our bigger picture is to keep working for where we want to get to – that's been the focus all year – and to work on the style of footy we want to play and keep building that chemistry," Worsfold said.

"Losing Hurley and having to shuffle things around and still being able to play the way we wanted to play (was a positive).

"Not having the captain (Dyson Heppell) out there; it's showing we have a lot of faith in the guys who've come in and they understand their role and are playing their role.

"So we are improving in that, but we've still got some improvement to go – that's our focus –and … what happened tonight (or) last week really won't influence how much better we get, as we go into training for our next opposition."

WATCH John Worsfold's full post-match media conference

Worsfold said the Kangaroos' effort to arrest Essendon's momentum and briefly snatch the lead in the final term was "a bit frustrating", but he was generally pleased with his side's performance.

Essendon led the inside 50s 52-33 and the scoreboard by 18 points at three-quarter time, with the unheralded Clarkes – Dylan and Zac – breaking even, at worst, with high-profile rivals Ben Cunnington and Todd Goldstein.

McDonald-Tipungwuti and Jake Stringer provided the spark up forward, as did Mitch Brown in a third-quarter cameo, while Zach Merrett led the way in the midfield.

"Overall, I thought there were some really good things in the game. It was a good, tough game of footy," Worsfold said.

"Both teams were having some periods on top and there was some really exciting forward play … so overall I thought when the game was really up for grabs, we got on top.

"We got the ball inside our 50 more, peppered the goals, and missed some opportunities to have a lead at half-time, but that second and third quarter we were well on top and North fought back strong like we knew they would.

"It was a great tick, for three quarters."