Essendon has made three changes to the team that was defeated by the Kangaroos last weekend. Dustin Fletcher is unavailable after the AFL tribunal suspended him earlier this week for one match and Aaron Henneman is sidelined with a lacerated kidney. The match committee also omitted youngster Brent Stanton.

Coming in for the three exclusions is Mark Alvey, Nathan Lovett-Murray and Kepler Bradley. All three get another opportunity to prove themselves at senior level and no doubt will be keen to help the skipper James Hird celebrate his 200 game milestone with a win.

Essendon team:
B: Ramanauskas, Richards, Welsh
HB: McVeigh, Bolton, Solomon
C: Dyson, Misiti, Alvey
HF: McPhee, Lucas, Murphy
F: Peverill, Lloyd, M. Johnson
R: Allan, J. Johnson, Hird
Inter: Hille, Lovett-Murray, Haynes, Bradley

In: Bradley, Alvey, Lovett-Murray
Out - Fletcher (suspended), Henneman (injured), Stanton (omitted)