One swallow does not make a summer, but this is not summer, and this was not a swallow, more a peregrine falcon - sleek, imposing, fast and ruthless, and reducing its prey to a quivering wreck. Essendon's polished dismemberment of a strangely ponderous Bulldogs outfit yesterday delighted Essendon fans and astounded the pundits and bookmakers, who (quite rightly) had the Bulldogs heavy favourites for the opening-round match. 

Essendon supporters who had - after the pleasing NAB Cup run - convinced themselves that with the arrival of the Messiah, all the perceived wrongs of the Knights era would not only be righted but never rear their ugly heads again, are no doubt feeling pleasantly vindicated today. 

It was certainly a wonderful statement of attacking football, but infused with the kind of defensive steel and accountability that James Hird had promised. Ever since Hird and his team took over at Windy Hill (thank goodness the home of the Bombers retains its quaint nickname, and has not yet become the DHL Express Stadium or some such affront) they have promised that the freewheeling attacking flair of which the team showed its boundless capability in recent years would be tempered by a willingness to work just as hard defensively and off the ball. 

That certainly appeared to be the case on Sunday at Etihad Stadium, with the Bombers' frenetic running exposing the Bulldogs for pace and enthusiasm and racking up barely-creditable statistical discrepancies, for example 24 inside-50s to eight in the second quarter, on the way to a 71-to-40 domination for the game. 

All that bemused Bombardier fans had to quibble with were such annoyances as the now-traditional more-behinds-than-goals, occasional mis-directed forays by foot, Brent Stanton being smothered twice in the first quarter, and the hot-brick sharing by hand often ending up with the player in the worst position of the entire chain; even, once, a stationary David Hille. Some of those instances leave a lingering disquiet that James Hird has not eradicated all of the bad habits of his rejuvenated list. But it is churlish to dwell on such fripperies, when the vast, dormant monster is stirring again. 

Or is it? I certainly hope so, but it is simply too early to get carried away. I well remember a similar opening-round effort against North Melbourne in 2008 at the same venue - eerily similar, right down to the 55-point winning margin - in which Essendon were jumped early, but exploded in a goal-scoring flurry that blew the Kangas away. After that luminous cameo the team - in Matthew Knights' first year - went 2-11 in an awful slide. 

Essendon has not won an opening-round encounter since then, but I seem to remember them being similarly capable of putting everything together occasionally in the Knights years - often early in the year - interspersing that with some dreadful, listless hammerings, often late in the season, as is common with a relatively young list. 

Yes, the signs yesterday were delectable: Jobe Watson showing as much class by foot as by hand; Dyson Heppell's sheer assuredness on debut; Courtenay Dempsey's constancy of defensive awareness to go with the eye-catching runs through the centre; the potent three-pronged forward aerial threat of Michael Hurley, David Hille and Patrick Ryder; Jake Melksham's and Stewart Crameri's aggression and tenacity; finally, the signs of David Myers' self-belief; and Heath Hocking's relish at being freed from defensive roles to run around racking up possessions. Essendon was dangerous whenever it had the ball and ferocious when it did not to get it back. 

In contrast, the Bulldogs were terrible, tentative and individualistic. It was a display that would have mystified and angered their supporters: ambushed again on opening day, as they were by Collingwood last year. There is no excuse for such lack of intensity after six months off following another lost preliminary final: no wonder Rodney Eade slumped further in his chair the longer the game went, looking like a walrus who had earlier that day eaten a bad puffin, losing the will even to reach for the phone and vent some spleen. Essendon's performance has to be put in context of a weak Bulldogs effort: then again, the Bombers' manic running and non-stop harassment caused much of that, once they had grabbed the lead and run off with the game. 

Again, there was a plethora of things for the Bomber fans to get excited about, as there had been over the NAB Cup run until the team predictably tired against Collingwood in the final. I am excited at the way they played, I'm thrilled with the early onfield signs generated, but I am reserving my judgment for two things: a) travel, and b) Anzac Day. 

The non-efforts on the road have disgraced Essendon for years, dating back to the coach's time as a player. Actually, this coming weekend is not the time to get a handle on this, because Sydney is in the same timezone and they haven't been too bad up there: it's a trip to Perth or Adelaide that will provide me with a real demonstration of any real change to the core attitude, because for years now Essendon has been beaten when the plane takes off at Tullamarine and heads west. As for Anzac Day, it's not just that Collingwood is now the yardstick that will make this day a critical one for Essendon in my eyes: last year, they gave up when confronted by a team more hungry and more willing to work hard. I want to see this team react to that contingency before I get too excited. But I am excited!