Essendon chief executive Peter Jackson this week travelled to the Gold Coast to have a look at the training camp Essendon's players are attending.

Jackson returned to the club yesterday looking a little worse for wear - it appears his decision to participate in the players' skirmish battle might not have been the best idea.

The Skirmish activity was basically a fitness activity for the players with two hours of solid running seen as a new and fun way to get some miles into their legs.

Jackson thought he would join in to see what Skirmish was all about - he soon found out courtesy of tough-nut defender Damien Hardwick.

Jackson was wandering through the Skirmish battle-ground, eyes peeled, when Hardwick suddenly jumped out from behind a tree.

"This is for my last contract," Hardwick yelled as he fired a paint-ball into the back of the now retreating chief executive.

It appears a contract was out on the man in charge of the contracts. Rumour has it that Jackson spent most of the next hour hiding up a tree.