“WE DON’T like them.”

Fair enough, ‘Sticks’.

This Sunday night marks the 252nd occasion that arch rivals Carlton and Essendon do battle. And when it comes to the rivalry between the Blues and the Bombers, there aren’t too many better placed to talk about it than Stephen Kernahan.

Carlton’s longest-serving captain kicked the second-most goals of anyone in Blues-Bombers history, behind only Matthew Lloyd. Statistically, Essendon was his favourite opponent, with 68 of his 738 goals (also a Carlton record) coming against the red and black.

Not that numbers really matter when it comes to the battle of the arch rivals, if you ask the man himself.

“The whole way through, every time we play each other, the ladder goes out the window — still to this day. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been there thinking ‘not a chance’, but you always are,” Kernahan told Carlton Media this week.

“Carlton versus Essendon, it doesn’t matter because anyone can win that day. I’m sure it’ll be like that when we play them again. It was an all-in attitude against Essendon, everyone was up for the task . . . either side could win, because everyone gets up for those games.”

“When I first came here, the two sides you had to play well against were Collingwood and Essendon. The rivalry goes way back: in my first days at Carlton when we played Essendon, we used to play at Windy Hill, which was hard yards.”

Kernahan’s great mate, Greg Williams, was a little less diplomatic when referencing visiting the traditional home of the Bombers.

“That was a prick of a place to go to.”

Williams had his fair share of battles - and controversies, too - when it came to playing the Bombers. Of course, his 250th and final game came against Essendon, when the dual Brownlow Medallist was chaired off by Luke O’Sullivan and captain Kernahan.

It’s clear now that while there’s a dislike when it comes to the arch rivals (don’t worry, he’ll tell you about it), he looks back on the battles quite fondly.

And in his role as Football Director at IKON Park in 2023, he feels the need - or, moreover, the responsibility - to pass on that advice to the Carlton players of today. The message is one he firmly believes has gotten through, even if some of his references fall flat.

“I’ve already mentioned to them to watch out for Duckworth this week, watch out for Merrett . . . they’re going ‘who the hell are they?’.

“There’s definitely extra, I really believe there’s extra. We had a rivalry as strong as anyone at that stage . . . they know, [the current players] know how important it is to beat the Bombers.

“There have been some iconic games against them. We’ve won a few, they’ve won a few.”

Or, in the case of Round 2 in the 1993 season, the teams have drawn a few, too.

The Blues lost a Grand Final to the Bombers that year (“I hate the Baby Bombers”, comes the cry from ‘Diesel’), and yet for Kernahan, he still hears about that game more than the decider 30 years ago.

And while he wasn’t keen to give the arch rival any sort of credit throughout the interview, he cut the Essendonians some slack on this particular instance.

“Don’t just put it down to Essendon people that bring it up . . . it’s every dickhead in the street!

“It is what it is. I missed it, and I paid a heavy price. They were always big games with 80,000 or 90,000 at the MCG . . . Collingwood and Essendon, our two arch rivals.

“That’s what it’s all about, that's what we played for. I enjoyed playing Essendon — I had the odd good day which was great.”

Any last comments from you, ‘Diesel’?

“Sheedy. I didn’t like him. He’s the problem!

“They had a great side all of the time, and he was a great coach. He always tagged me, he made it hell.

“Those rivalries, they’re the best. Essendon, Collingwood, Richmond, all those huge games with huge crowds: I love that.”