Essendon and the Western Bulldogs will fight it out for the EJ Whitten Cup on Friday night. The EJ Whitten Cup commenced in 1995 as a tribute to the late, great EJ (Ted) Whitten. The EJ Whitten Cup is contested perpetually.

The teams have played 13 matches for the EJ Whitten Cup with the ledger 8-4 in favor of the Bombers. At The Dome, the sides have met six times. Essendon has taken the points on four of these occasions. There has been one draw, which was in Round 14, 2002.

The Bulldogs one win occurred in Round 21, 2000 when Chris Grant's famous left foot snap from the boundary line secured victory. It was Essendon's only defeat for the season.

Ted Whitten Jnr will present the EJ Whitten Cup to the winning captain on the ground at the conclusion of this Friday night’s game.

Please note tomorrow night's game against the Western Bulldogs is a 'Reserve Seat Ticket' Match. There will be NO general admission area on Level 3. Level 3 will be sold as reserved seating.