“Falling Behind: The Underside of Bomber Debutant’s Journey and the Profound Reality It Reveals, Insights from Matthew Lloyd”

Essendon legend Matthew Lloyd is calling on his former club to thoroughly investigate the significant number of injuries that have plagued them this season.

Currently, the Bombers have 13 players listed as injured, forcing them to bring in mid-season draft selections Archer May and Lachlan Blakiston just two weeks after they were selected.

The team has been particularly affected by long-term injuries, especially among key position players.

Nick Bryan, Sam Draper, Tom Edwards, and Lewis Hayes have all been ruled out for the rest of the season. Additionally, Nik Cox is currently under indefinite concussion protocols, while Harrison Jones and Ben McKay are also sidelined for a lengthy period. Jordan Ridley, Kyle Langford, and Zach Reid are facing ongoing issues with soft tissue and leg injuries.

Lloyd emphasises the necessity for the club to delve into the underlying reasons behind these injuries, given the detrimental impact on their season.

“While it’s worth noting that Essendon has had 10 debutants this year, which is somewhat positive, it’s only so because of the injuries they’ve sustained,” Lloyd shared with 3AW.

“The concerning issue is the high number of debutants, which is directly linked to the injury crisis the club is experiencing. They need to examine why this is occurring so frequently.”

“Two players they drafted only a fortnight ago are now playing in the senior AFL team. While that’s a great story, they’ll likely be significantly out of their depth, having only been playing state football and not being among the top 800 players prior.”

“This is not a slight against them, but the Bombers must investigate all these recurring soft tissue injuries. Why does it keep affecting Jordan Ridley? Why are injuries continually troubling Kyle Langford?”

“While ACL injuries are sometimes unavoidable, they’ve suffered three of them, which surely warrants a thorough investigation into the multiple injuries the Bombers are facing.”

The Bombers are set to clash with Geelong at the MCG this Saturday afternoon, looking to bounce back from a narrow defeat to Carlton last week.