There is growing confidence in the Essendon camp that brilliant forward Mark Mercuri will be fit to take on Richmond at the MCG tomorrow. Mercuri trained strongly during the Bombers' final hit-out this afternoon showing no sign of the calf problem that flared up earlier in the week. ""He will play,"" Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy declared to the media contingent at training. ""Providing he pulls up well he'll play - I'd be disappointed if he didn't."" Essendon players were put through a sharp 40-minute session to wind up the week.

""Friday afternoons are never a long hit-out but they looked very sharp tonight,"" Essendon football manager Matthew Drain said. Mark McVeigh, who was also under an injury cloud earlier this week, trained well tonight and will play. ""The past 48 hours has been good interms of injury. We will go in unchanged assuming nothing untoward happens.""