While Essendon may not hold the title for the longest injury list in the AFL, the specific types and severity of the injuries plaguing the team are proving to be a significant concern for a club in dire need of reinforcements from Wednesday’s mid-season draft.
The Bombers have seen their ruckmen Sam Draper and Nick Bryan sidelined for the entire season, while towering talents Tom Edwards and Lewis Hayes have both suffered torn ACLs. Additionally, Harrison Jones is contending with a fractured ankle, and Jordan Ridley is grappling with a serious hamstring strain.
The situation deteriorated further over the weekend, as Kyle Langford (quad), Zach Reid (hamstring), and Ben McKay (foot) were all added to the growing list of casualties during the victory against Richmond.
Kyle Langford has become the latest Bomber to fall victim to injury. AFL Photos via Getty Images
In this year’s mid-season draft, Essendon could potentially secure up to four picks, with coach Brad Scott keeping the door open for the possibility of one or more of those picks making their debut against reigning premiers Brisbane at the Gabba.
“It’s certainly unusual, but fortunately, we now have the mid-season draft to help address this situation, even though it isn’t a perfect solution,” Scott conveyed to reporters on Monday.
“It’s not out of the question (for a mid-season recruit to play on Thursday),” he added.
“We’re yet to finalise that strategy, but will have another meeting following today’s training session as the situation is evolving based on recent updates regarding player availability.
“It’s an exciting time in a way, as we’re now evaluating players we might not have considered just a week ago; our recruiting team is working hard to finalise their assessments, and we’ll review that this afternoon.”
On a brighter note, star midfielder Darcy Parish looks set to return after successfully completing his VFL return over the weekend.
“Parish has a strong chance of playing,” said Scott.
“He performed admirably at the VFL level and has been training well. If not for our bye, he would have played two weeks ago. We’ll assess his performance in training today and consult with our high-performance and medical teams before making a final decision.”
Additionally, the Bombers have confirmed that teenager Zak Johnson is poised to make his club debut against the Lions on Thursday.
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