It wasn't quite the slaughter Sydney coach Paul Roos had predicted but Essendon still managed to beat the youthful Swans line-up by 19 points in their AFL practice match at North Sydney Oval on Friday night.

Essendon won 13.12 (90) to 10.11 (71).

Ex-Bomber Ted Richards did well for his new club with three goals while at the other end new Essendon skipper Matthew Lloyd kicked two.

Essendon opened with four goals including one from Lloyd to take an 11-point lead at quarter-time.

The Bombers found some space through midfield in the second quarter with four quick goals including a mark and goal from Lloyd on the boundary and a lovely effort on the run from Nathan Lovett-Murray.

Richards got one back for the Swans but Essendon steadied through Scott Lucas who kicked his second goal of the match.

Lucas was a constant danger at half-forward and had a good battle with Lewis Roberts-Thomson, one of only four Swans premiership players on show on Friday night.

Richards took a strong grab and kicked his second goal as the Swans fought back to trail by only 18 points at half-time.

The young Swans outscored Essendon 3.3 to 2.4 in the third term as Richards sparked the crowd with a strong mark and his third goal early in the term.

Swans ruckman Stephen Doyle, who broke down with an ankle injury in round one last year and missed the rest of the season, made his presence felt in an encouraging display.

No.7 draft pick Paddy Ryder from Western Australia kicked a goal for the Bombers but Northern Knights rookie Paul Currie then got one back for the Swans who were 13 points down at the final break.

Jobe Watson kicked his second for the Bombers and Ryan Brabazon answered for Sydney but a set-shot goal from Chris Heffernan extended the margin to 18 points.

A banana-bending snapshot goal from Currie gave Sydney renewed hope but Ricky Dyson's long running goal ended the contest.

Livewire Angus Monfries, who kicked a spectacular snapshot goal in the first quarter, was a busy player for the Bombers.

Halfback Kepler Bradley, Jason Winderlich and Andrew Welsh were also in good touch.

Essendon's pint-sized recruit from Japan, Michito Sakaki, was a hard worker but had little influence.

The Bombers had plenty of stars on the paddock including Lloyd, Lucas, full-back Dustin Fletcher and Carlton recruit Scott Camporeale who was effective in patches.

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