Horsburgh, who will seek re-election for another three years when Bomber members complete voting over the next fortnight, told the Herald Sun newspaper that under coach Matthew Knights Essendon should stay true to its course and follow a path not dissimilar to 2008 premiers Hawthorn.
The chairman endorsed Knights, saying the coach deserved "eight out of 10" for his first year in the job, in which the Bombers finished 12th with eight wins and 14 losses.
While that might not make for happy reading for some Essendon fans used to success, Horsburgh said Knights, who he believes should guide the club through its re-building phase and continue at the helm until 2012, was right in concentrating on fast-tracking the club's next generation of stars.
"In 2012, I reckon we can give it a real hiding," Horsburgh said.
"Go back and look at Hawthorn's history; it's not unlike what we're trying to model.
"Two and a half years ago the papers were saying Kennett wanted to sack Clarkson and they won a flag and they did it by sticking with youth."
Horsburgh expects Essendon to improve next year but finish just outside the top eight while a finals appearance in 2010 is not beyond the club.
Further improvement in 2011 would see the young Bombers emerge as a legitimate threat while in 2012 Knights' team would be a serious challenger for September glory, Horsburgh believes.
"We've got an aggressive coach who knows where he's going on field," he said.
"This year the board encouraged Matthew to stick with his game plan and not to be deterred by the results, [to not] get down.
"He told the board early in the season 'we're going all out attack, I know we've got to get defensive skills, but I can't teach them all at once'."
Horsburgh said Knights deserved praise for his performance after 12 months in the top job.
"His management of the team is excellent, he had good communication skills, everyone on that list knows what he expects of them, he's a disciplinarian and Matthew was strong on that," Horsburgh said.
"And I think he's got a modern game plan.
"I hope he's there (in 2012) … in my mind he would be."
