Essendon draftee Nik Cox and second year forward Harrison Jones will their AFL debuts in Saturday night's clash with Hawthorn.
Bombers coach Ben Rutten confirmed that the pair, along with trade acquisitions Jye Caldwell, Peter Wright and Nick Hind will don the red sash for the first time against the Hawks.
Essendon’s first pick at last year’s NAB AFL Draft, Nik Cox, set to make his debut against Hawthorn on Saturday night. @AFLcomau
— Callum Twomey (@CalTwomey) March 17, 2021
SEE ALSO:Â Essendon 2021 Season Preview
Cox was drafted to Essendon out of the Northern Knights with Pick 8 in the 2020 National Draft.
Meanwhile, Jones arrived at the Bombers with Pick 30 in the 2019 National Draft, but a foot stress fracture hampered his 2020 season.
"Nik Cox hasn't played a proper game of footy for about 18 months, so it's a huge effort from him," Rutten told reporters on Thursday.
"He's presented well, done nearly every session and really built his game over the last couple of weeks. We're looking forward to what he can do not only this week, but throughout the season. He'll keep getting better and better."
It leaves Cox's fellow first-round Bombers draftees Archie Perkins and Zach Reid as well as pre-season recruit Alex Waterman out of the senior side.
The Bombers and Hawks face off at 7.25pm at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night, with official line-ups to be announced at 6.20pm on Friday (all times AEDT).
