MELBOURNE has turned in a spirited display but had few answers for Essendon captain Matthew Lloyd, who kicked eight goals to steer the Bombers to a 16-point win in the third annual Clash for Cancer match at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.

Lloyd's performance kept the Bombers' flickering finals hopes alive, while the Demons will take plenty of heart from a number of its players across the board.

They ran hard all day and their endeavour couldn't be questioned, but Essendon's class showed when they needed it – winning 19.10 (124) to 17.6 (108).

The game ebbed and flowed, with Essendon establishing leads, only to be pegged back by the Dees before going away again.

Lloyd was dominant forward, reminiscent of his glory years as Melbourne struggled to find a match-up that worked.

And his screamer in the third term will be well up there in goal of the year calculations.

Demon Colin Sylvia offered a consistent target forward from the second term, with Cale Morton and co-captain Cameron Bruce, who had 28 possessions, also good.

Colin Garland work hard at the other end, James McDonald was exceptional in the centre, while Matthew Bate, Simon Buckley and Paul Johnson were effective.

Tagger Lynden Dunn also did a terrific job in minimising the influence of Essendon playmaker Jobe Watson.

Essendon was best in the competition for clearances over last month, but Melbourne's endeavour earned them the honours in that department 37-33.

Lloyd was clearly Essendon's best, David Hille was magnificent in the ruck, Angus Monfries and Damien Peverill were good in the middle and veteran Dustin Fletcher was solid in defence.

Essendon charged out of the blocks, with Lloyd kicking two in the first four minutes, before Addam Maric got one back.

Adam McPhee then kicked his first before Clint Bartram hit the scoreboard to get the margin at the first break back to just five points.

Lloyd then went past former Collingwood great Peter McKenna to go to eighth on the all-time goalkickers list, adding salt to a mess at the other end when Mark Jamar marked in the goal-square and missed when playing on.

But Melbourne then came to life, kicking the next three. Morton made the most of a 50m penalty, Sylvia took a terrific contested mark and converted, then Buckley had a couple of bounces and kicked truly from 30m.

The margin was Melbourne by a goal.

But that simply sparked the Bombers, who booted five of the next six, with Aaron Davey's goal bringing it back to 15 at the half.

The Demons started the third the way they finished the second, with Sylvia and Paul Johnson getting it back within a goal before Lloyd's fifth.

Austin Wonaeamirri then accepted a handball from Jason Laycock and converted, Sylvia marked and kicked his third and the Demons were leading again.

But sure enough, it was then Essendon's turn to dominate, and four straight goals – including one from Lloyd's stunning mark, soaring majestically over the pack – had the Bombers 21 points clear at the final break.

In the last, the Bombers twice got out to a 27-point lead, and although Melbourne got the gap down to inside two goals, it wasn't enough.

Next week, Melbourne meets the ladder-leading Cats at the MCG on Friday night, while Essendon has West Coast at Subiaco Oval on Sunday.

Essendon     3.1   9.6   14.8   19.10 (124)
Melbourne     2.2   7.3   11.5   17.6 (108)

GOALS
Essendon: Lloyd 8, Monfries 3, McPhee 2, Lovett 2, Atkinson, Reimers, Slattery, Jetta
Melbourne: Morton 3, Sylvia 3, Maric 2, Bate 2, Bartram, Green, Buckley, Davey, P. Johnson, Jamar, Wonaeamirri

BEST
Essendon: Lloyd, Hille, Monfries, Fletcher, McPhee, Peverill, Lovett-Murray, Nash
Melbourne: McDonald, Sylvia, Morton, Garland, Dunn, Bate, Bruce

INJURIES
Essendon: Reimers (hamstring)
Melbourne: Garland (hamstring), Davey (bruised heel)

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Kennedy, Sully, Fila

Official crowd: 46,334 at the MCG

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the club.