Essendon welcomed more than 40 former players and officials into the NEC Hangar for a morning walk and coffee catchup early on Thursday morning, pushing forward with their continuing plan of unifying its wide network of past players.

In an initiative led by Mark McVeigh, longtime trainer Charlie Italia and key football staff, the Club opened its doors early and allowed plenty of time for a wide-ranging era of players to get together once again.

The group took part in a lap around the facility and reconvened on the indoor training oval, where McVeigh and CEO Tim Roberts formally welcomed them and provided an insightful pre-season update from the new-look football department.

Just a small sampling of the names present included two of the Club’s oldest living Premiership players in John Birt and former Captain Ken Fraser, esteemed ruckman Simon Madden and modern greats such as Scott Lucas and Gavin Wanganeen.

President Andrew Welsh was accompanied by Board members in Sally Curtain, David Wills and Tony Howard, as well as past players in fellow Director Ted Richards and the Bombers’ Chief Strategy and Growth Officer Mark Bolton.

Wanganeen spoke to Essendon media about the significance of these events for the contingent of past players that have shaped the footy club.

The Bombers will continue to engage its past players and officials over the course of this pre-season and into the 2027 campaign, with events to be communicated by the Club and its Past Players and Officials Association affiliate.