Essendon Football Club has today informed Alastair Lord, Rhett Montgomerie and Cian McBride they will not be offered playing contracts for 2024.
The club thanks all three players for their services to Essendon.
Lord arrived at Essendon in 2021 with selection 46 in the NAB AFL Draft and played one game for the club in 2022.
Gaelic football convert Cian McBride joined the Bombers in 2019 under the AFL international rookie rules. McBride spent his junior years playing Gaelic football but made the switch to Australian Football at the beginning of 2019, impressing at the NAB AFL Draft Combine and AFL Europe training sessions. In 2022, the AFL granted special exemption to keep the Category B Rookie beyond his third season due to COVID disruptions.
Montgomerie was selected with pick four in the 2022 NAB AFL rookie draft, selected as a mature aged recruit out of South Australia.
McBride and Montgomerie did not play a senior AFL game.
General Manager of Performance Daniel McPherson thanked Lord, Montgomerie and McBride for their contribution to Essendon.
“The three players have been terrific club people and handled the news today with great professionalism," McPherson said.
"We wish them all the best for their future careers, and they will always be welcome back at Essendon."
