Essendon will be without Peter Wright for the next 4-6 weeks after the key forward suffered a high-grade ankle ligament injury in Saturday’s VFL practice match against Collingwood.
The 28-year-old was sent for scans after an awkward landing in a marking contest during the second quarter, which confirmed strained ligaments in his left ankle, ruling him out for the start of the 2025 season.
Midfielder Darcy Parish is building his running loads and progressing in his recovery from a niggling back complaint, with the former All-Australian aiming for a return in the early stages of the home-and-away season.
Defender Jayden Laverde will be unavailable for the next 2-3 weeks as he battles a persistent hip flexor complaint.
Utility Nik Cox is now working back into non-contact, skills-based training after managing lingering symptoms from a concussion sustained back in December.
Matt Guelfi continues to rehab from last month’s hamstring surgery, while Alwyn Davey Jnr has also increased his running loads after undergoing surgery on his meniscus.
Essendon’s clash with Hawthorn kicks off from 7:40pm AEDT this Friday night at the MCG, broadcast live on Ch 7, FOX and Kayo.
| Player | Injury | Estimated Return |
|---|---|---|
4. Kyle Langford |
Hamstring |
Test
Langford suffered a right hamstring strain in the Bombers' round one clash against Hawthorn. He'll look to Anzac Day for a potential return to play. |
|
28. Xavier Duursma |
Soreness |
Test
Duursma copped a heavy hit to the abdominal region in the fourth term against the Eagles. He'll be a test for Anzac Day. |
|
13. Nik Cox |
Calf |
1 week
Cox suffered a minor calf setback in training. |
|
35. Matt Guelfi |
Hamstring |
1 week
Guelfi had surgery on his hamstring back in February. |
|
36. Angus Clarke |
Collarbone |
1 week
Clarke suffered a broken collarbone in the first quarter against Werribee in round two of the VFL. |
|
6. Jye Caldwell |
Hamstring |
2 weeks
Caldwell suffered a hamstring strain at training following round three. |
|
2. Sam Draper |
Achilles |
TBC
Draper suffered a ruptured Achilles late in the round six win over West Coast. |
|
3. Darcy Parish |
Calf |
TBC
Parish suffered a setback with a calf strain on the verge of his return to play. |
|
24. Nick Bryan |
ACL |
Season
Nick Bryan suffered an ACL tear in round five against Melbourne. |
|
45. Thomas Edwards |
ACL |
Season
Edwards has suffered a ruptured ACL and will most likely miss the remainder of the season. |
4. Kyle Langford
Langford suffered a right hamstring strain in the Bombers' round one clash against Hawthorn. He'll look to Anzac Day for a potential return to play.
28. Xavier Duursma
Duursma copped a heavy hit to the abdominal region in the fourth term against the Eagles. He'll be a test for Anzac Day.
13. Nik Cox
Cox suffered a minor calf setback in training.
35. Matt Guelfi
Guelfi had surgery on his hamstring back in February.
36. Angus Clarke
Clarke suffered a broken collarbone in the first quarter against Werribee in round two of the VFL.
6. Jye Caldwell
Caldwell suffered a hamstring strain at training following round three.
2. Sam Draper
Draper suffered a ruptured Achilles late in the round six win over West Coast.
3. Darcy Parish
Parish suffered a setback with a calf strain on the verge of his return to play.
24. Nick Bryan
Nick Bryan suffered an ACL tear in round five against Melbourne.
45. Thomas Edwards
Edwards has suffered a ruptured ACL and will most likely miss the remainder of the season.
Last Updated: 6:13 AM Tuesday, April 22, 2025
