Ben Doolan has retired while Peter Somerville, Matthew Banks and JordanDoering have all been delisted. The final list will be lodged with the AFLat 2pm today.
Somerville, Banks and Doering will all nominate for the national draft onOctober 31 in a bid to continue their AFL careers.
Essendon will go into the draft with four selections, those being 40, 46,62 and 78.
Football manager Matthew Drain said the club expected to use all fourselections at the national draft. He said the club was unlikely toparticipate in the pre-season draft on December 21.
There has been plenty of speculation over the possibility of formerEssendon ruckman John Barnes returning to the club after a stint withGeelong.
"The match committee is certainly looking at our ruck situation. It is amatter of whether we go for some experience, someone like Barnes, or lookat a younger player," Drain said.
"But we also have Jonathon Robran who can fill a hole for us in the ruck.He played the final five games of last season in the ruck for Hawthorn whenPaul Salmon was out with a broken cheekbone and did a good job -particularly around the ground."
Drain said the national draft boasted some excellent players.
"With the 17-year-olds back in the draft, the pool for the 2000 season ismuch stronger than it has been in recent years with a large number of highquality tall players in the mix," Drain said.
"So despite the fact our first selection isn't until number 40, I stillbelieve we will secure players who will have the ability to play seniorfootball."
The majority of Essendon players have returned from there end of seasonoverseas trip. They will return to training on November 15 with themajority of their skills sessions being held at Essendon Grammar School.
