Essendon Bombers

Bombers coach flags Mid-Season Draft plans amid key position injury crisis

“Not beyond the realms of possibility.”

Published by

Aidan Cellini

Essendon's injury crisis could see a host of mid-season draftees make an immediate impact as the club looks to fill key position roles across the entire ground.

Thursday's primetime clash against Brisbane will see 10 players standing above 190cm unavailable for selection through injury, with Sam Draper, Lewis Hayes, Nick Bryan, and Tom Edwards ruled out of the 2025 season.

Making matters worse, Jordan Ridley (hamstring), Harrison Jones (ankle) and Nik Cox (concussion) were already sidelined with injuries, while a trifecta of talls in Ben McKay (foot), Zach Reid (hamstring) and Kyle Langford (quad) were added to the list.

Heading into Wednesday's rookie intake, the Bombers hold four vacancies on their list, and could potentially hand one of their draftees a debut 24 hours later, according to coach Brad Scott.

"Not beyond the realms of possibility," Scott said with a wry smile.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 12: Brad Scott, Senior Coach of the Bombers looks on during the 2024 AFL Round 05 match between the Western Bulldogs and the Essendon Bombers at Marvel Stadium on April 12, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

"We might have to look for Queenslanders, that might make it logistically easier."

Scott said the club hasn't finalised their plans, although key position players would be the likeliest targets to fill the short-to-medium term void.

"It's exciting in a way," Scott said.

"We're looking at players, that even a week ago, we weren't considering. Our recruiting team are working overtime at the moment.

"They're finalising their report, and we'll go through that (Monday) afternoon."

The Bombers coach did acknowledge the enormity of handing a mid-season draftee a debut immediately, especially with a 24-hour timeline attached to it.

"It will be an enormous amount of preparation for our coaches to bring guys up to speed in terms of how we want them to play," Scott continued.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 16: Sam Draper of the Bombers and teammate Nick Bryan in action during the Essendon Bombers AFL training session at The Hangar on January 16, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

"In situations like this, things change really quickly, and it doesn't change more quickly than having a mid-season draftee play the next day, which is a possibility."

Veteran midfielder Darcy Parish is a "very good chance" to return to the senior side for his first AFL match this year after a string of soft-tissue injuries.

Published by

Aidan Cellini

3 weeks ago