Richmond went down to Essendon by 17 points in Saturday night's Dreamtime match at Ikon Park.

The Dons' firepower was too much for the under-strength Tigers, who were debuting their second train-on player for the season (Lauren Caruso) in the 8.5 (53) to 5.6 (36) loss.

The result sees Essendon on the same number of wins as fourth-placed Brisbane (with North Melbourne and Narrm still to play), while Richmond sits a game out of the top eight with the longest injury list in the competition.

Emelia Yassir was lively early in Richmond's forward line, but Essendon gradually piled on the goals, jumping out to an 18-point lead at half-time.

It wasn't a single Bombers forward tearing the Tigers apart, either, with six individual goalscorers to the main break. It included a very excited Renee Tierney, who slotted her first and then promptly left the field for treatment after a heavy hit in the preceding marking contest.

Richmond clicked into gear in the third term, Eilish Sheerin provided plenty of run off half-back and Stella Reid and Katie Brennan pushing up high to provide contests, but they coughed up a crucial late goal to Sophie Alexander, who converted from a tight angle.

Essendon's young guns combined to open the last quarter, Amber Clarke dancing round Bec Miller on the wing and booting it long for Paige Scott to run on to, providing enough of a buffer to see the Bombers home, despite the Tigers' late flurry of points.

The contrasting styles of superstar midfielders Maddy Prespakis and Monique Conti were on show – the Tiger providing plenty of speed around the ground and darting around her opponents, while Prespakis' sharp hands round the stoppages worked wonders despite the close attention of Sarah Hosking.

Most pleasingly for Essendon, it got the win without a monster game from Bonnie Toogood, who played well in attack but didn't have to be the star of the show in a well-rounded team performance.

Meg Macdonald sat out most of the fourth term with a bleeding ear after an accidental head clash with a teammate, and Scott received some treatment for a corkie, while there may be some concerns for Prespakis after a couple of tackles that could catch the MRO's eye, first on Conti then Sarah Hosking.

Flipping the magnets
With eight unavailable Tigers, coach Ryan Ferguson and his team had to adapt on the run. In Caitlin Greiser's absence, Laura McClelland was swung into a key forward role, with the returning Bec Miller playing her customary defensive spot. Ruck Gab Seymour took charge of the in-form Bombers spearhead Bonnie Toogood, leaving Jemima Woods to support Poppy Kelly in the stoppages.

Up next
Richmond travels up to Cairns to face Hawthorn in a home game for the Hawks.

RICHMOND     2.1     3.3     5.3     5.6 (36)
ESSENDON      4.2     6.3     7.4     8.5 (53) 

GOALS
Richmond: Yassir 3, Jones, McClelland
Essendon: Scott 2, Toogood, Bannister, Prespakis, Wales, Tierney, Alexander 

BEST
Richmond: Conti, Sheerin, Yassir, Brennan, Seymour
Essendon: Prespakis, Nanscawen, Radford, Toogood, Wales 

INJURIES
Richmond: Macdonald (head knock)
Essendon: Bannister (knee) 

LATE CHANGES
Richmond: Caitlin Greiser (thumb), replaced in selected side by Lauren Caruso
Essendon: Georgia Gee (injured), replaced in selected side by Renee Tierney

Crowd: 2,847 at IKON Park