Essendon teases baby Bombers debut

Essendon coach Brad Scott has teased the potential for a debut or two in the club's massive first-up clash with Hawthorn this Friday night.

While Scott admits to a sense of "stepping into a bit of the unknown” - something he says he experiences every year, as player or coach - one thing he knows for sure: his club's draftees are going to excel.

When pressed as to whether the South Australian Dyson Sharp or West Australian Jacob Farrow would get the call up this weekend, Scott took the opportunity to praise both youngsters, while remaining tight-lipped about selection.

“I think we'll see one (debut)," Scott said.

"On pre-season performance, we're extremely happy with our draftees. We're not in a position where we have to blood players. We're not trying to bring players in just for the sake of being young.”

Scott was asked what impressed him most about the two housemates, and offered that their physical development is the two youngsters' greatest asset.

“(It's) their readiness to play. There's always some concerns about young guys, by virtue of their age. They come in and they play against men, probably for the first time in their career. That's not the case in Dyson Sharp's situation, he always played up as a junior, he's played SANFL football, and he looks like a 25-year-old, the way he plays. A lot's impressed me, but it's mostly been their readiness for AFL football.”

The Bombers experienced a horrendous run with injury last season, with the depth that uncovered, the only silver lining.

“Outside of our five draftees, plus Cillian Bourke from Ireland, there's only one player on our list who hasn't played AFL footy, and he was very close to being selected. So, last year, while it presented its challenges, it means that we have better depth in terms of guys who have played.

"But there's no doubt when you look at the inclusions of guys who missed the back half of last year, whether that's (Darcy) Parish, (Jye) Caldwell, (Nate) Caddy, (Kyle) Langford, half the team. Having them back in is a welcome return.”

Having not taken part in Opening Round, Scott took the weekend to observe the coaching of his contemporaries, with a particular interest in how they maximised the fifth player on the bench. Scott appears keen to experiment with the newfound freedom this allows, himself.

“I think the use of the fifth player on the bench is fantastic. It brings a bit of innovation… It brings a bit of lateral thinking. I think it's really exciting,” he offered.

The Bombers host the Hawks on Friday night, with the team to be announced here, in the coming days.