It seems Essendon premiership player and now club board member Alec Epis has been scaring the living daylights out of a few dinner guests in recent weeks. Epis often invites Essendon players around for a bite to eat during the week. When the players arrive at the Epis residence he has an Essendon jumper waiting for them at the front door that he tells them he needs signed. Epis hands them a pen and the obliging player walks over to the jumper. They then take the lid off the pen which promptly explodes in the hands. Epis' famous exploding pen has seen a number of players jump 10 foot in the air.

""Lloydy's reaction was the funniest,"" Epis laughed. ""He jumped back and threw the pen away. I've got just about every player - in fact I got Jason Johnson twice. It is hardly surprising that players now refuse to sign anything at my place unless they have their own pen.""

It was in-fact Bomber mid-fielder Chris Heffernan who introduced Epis to the exploding pen. ""He was telling me about some fellow from down his way who knew me and he wanted me to write him a note. I was happy to do that and of course Heff gave me the pen and it expolded in my face. I was so impressed I went and bought my own,"" Epis said.

Bomber spearhead Matthew Lloyd was so taken by Epis' exploding pen that he decided to try it out at his parents home. ""I went home and told dad that a fan who used to follow Carlton when he played wanted him to sign something - he was rapt becase he hasn't signed an autograph in about 30 years,"" Lloyd said. ""I gave him the pen and it exploded on cue - it worked a treat. He was devastated that I had made up the story about the fan who wanted his autograph.""