The practice match circuit winds up after this weekend and Essendon will want to make the most of its final hit-out. And what a perfect hit-out it will be – Geelong has been one of the form sides of the 2003 pre-season. The Cats are fit and firing and coach Mark Thompson would never pass up an opportunity to knock over Essendon no matter what is on the line. So Essendon will have a solid hit-out at Lavington this Friday night and that is exactly what it needs.
Essendon was virtually at full strength last weekend when it defeated the Western Bulldogs by 12 goals. And it wasn’t as if the Bulldogs were short on talent – Luke Darcy, Rohan Smith, Nathan Brown, Brad Johnson and Scott West were all present. So plenty of confidence will be taken out of that performance.
Once again a very strong side has been named for this weekend’s match against Geelong. A sprinkling of young players have again been given the chance to push their case for Round 1 but most of the experienced brigade will also be making the trip to the border. It is an important two hours for the young players and those on the edge of selection. Who wants to travel to Brisbane in two weeks time?
Tristan Cartledge will make his first appearance in a senior Essendon side this Friday night. The lanky forward / ruckman was very impressive for the Bendigo Bombers last weekend and has earned his chance at senior level. He still has some development to do physically but he is smart and an excellent mark. He got his hands on the football at ruck contests and he kicked three goals when pushed deep into the forward line. His performance tomorrow night will be of great interest.
Rookies Scott Howard and Ken Hall have both been selected for tomorrow night’s game and Jobe Watson has been recalled after a solid performance across half back in the VFL side. Sean Wellman (pinched nerve) and Adam McPhee (ankle) have fully recovered and will play this weekend.
The Essendon side is:
Backs: Bannister Jacobs Solomon
Half Backs: McPhee Lucas Ramanauskas
Centres: Wellman Misiti M.Johnson
Half Forwards: McVeigh Laycock Barnard
Forwards: Mercuri Lloyd Hird
Rucks: Hille Rioli Peverill
Bench: Cartledge Hall Watson J. Johnson Howard Cupido
You can keep track of the Bombers’ final practice match on the website from 7pm. Our Live Scoring facility will keep you in touch with Essendon’s progress complete with goalkickers and quarter by quarter summaries.
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