Essendon will be boosted by a number of big inclusions this week after making five unforced changes at the selection table for its clash with Fremantle at Optus Stadium on Saturday.
Leading the list of inclusions is two-time All Australian Michael Hurley, whose rapid recovery from shoulder surgery has seen him return after missing just four games.
Senior coach John Worsfold said the powerful defender needed to get through full training to prove his fitness during the week and the experienced Bomber passed the test with flying colours.
“He came along really well and he’s worked unbelievably hard to get himself back,” Worsfold said.
“He set himself a stretched target to get ready for this game and has done brilliantly, so he got through everything we could have asked of him today and he’s ready to go.”
Michael Hurley will line up for the first time since round 17 on Saturday. (Image: AFL Photos)
Worsfold said dashing defender Adam Saad has also performed “really well” on the track to prove his fitness after missing last week’s loss to the Western Bulldogs with a minor hamstring injury.
“We went really precautionary last week and were comfortable that with everything he’d done, he had his chance to prove his fitness today and he did that really well.”
Talented young Dons Darcy Parish (concussion) and Aaron Francis (whiplash) have now fully recovered from the injuries that saw them miss the clash with the Dogs and Worsfold said he is excited to have them back on the field.
“They’re both really good. They’ve had a good week or so getting over that, so that’s awesome for those young boys.”
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First-year Bomber Brayden Ham has continued to impress in his debut season at The Hangar, earning him his third senior game this weekend.
Ham’s last AFL game was in the side’s narrow loss to Sydney in round eight and Worsfold said he is confident the 20-year-old is ready to step up again following another strong performance in the VFL last week gathering 22 disposals and a goal.
“He plays his role really well, he runs well and moves well, he’s been finding a bit of the footy and he’s been hitting the scoreboard as well,” Worsfold said.
“He’s an exciting young player coming through and we can see an important role for him in this game.”
Club leaders Dyson Heppell (foot) and Orazio Fantasia (hip) continue to be assessed each week for their availability, but Worsfold revealed each have pulled up particularly well from last week’s game and are set to enter the match fit and ready to fire.
“It was awesome that (Heppell) pulled up well – better than he had in previous games – which meant that we could keep him training and then he feels well enough to play this week.
“Orazio is the same, he’s actually pulled up better and feels better going into this week’s game.”
The Bombers enter the game in seventh place on the ladder with just two games remaining, while Freo sits in 12th place, two wins behind the Dons.
Worsfold is expecting another hot encounter with a finals berth on the line as his side looks to bounce back from a disappointing fortnight, and he said the important inclusions this week can help guide the team back into form.
“The last couple of weeks have been poor weeks for us for a variety of reasons, we obviously had six changes going into last week’s game and five of them were injuries.
“But we’re starting to see some players come back into the line-up and we think that gets us back to where we want to be.
“Our focus is on getting over there and playing the style of footy that we are aiming to play week in, week out, doing it to the best of our ability and everything else takes care of itself.
“We’re just excited about getting back on the park together and playing alongside each other.”
The first bounce is set for 6:10pm (AWST) on Saturday.
