Essendon coach John Worsfold is confident the Bombers can handle a significant ruck challenge against Adelaide at Adelaide Oval on Friday night.

Zac Clarke, who performed brilliantly in the side’s five-point defeat of North Melbourne last week, has been withdrawn from the side due to illness, leaving the side without a natural full-time ruck.

But Worsfold isn’t concerned, with important tall Shaun McKernan and inclusion Michael Hartley set to share a bulk of the load.

McKernan has plenty of experience in the ruck, but Hartley has only recently dabbled in the craft at VFL level in recent weeks following injuries to rucks Tom Bellchambers (calf) and Sam Draper (ACL).

“He’s been in the VFL and done a little bit of ruck work and that was once Draper went down injured, we thought we’d need at least to put some work into Michael, so we’ve been doing that,” Worsfold said on Thursday.

“We’ve still got Shaun McKernan who has done a lot more ruck work at AFL level, so we’ve still got options there to look at about how we want to mix the team up.”

The Bombers have received a midfield boost with the inclusion of skipper Dyson Heppell and Worsfold said it is “awesome” to have the inspirational leader back in the side.

“The boys have held up well and Zach Merrett, leading the side in his absence, did a really good.

“We love having ‘Hepp’ out there with us and we’re all excited that he’s back up and going.”

Heppell’s leadership will be important against the Crows on Friday. (Image: AFL Photos)

New recruit Will Snelling will also line up on the ball for his first AFL game as a Bomber on Friday.

The mid-season draftee is an Adelaide local and will enter the match off the back of sensational form throughout the year at both SANFL and VFL level.

“It’s amazing how it works out. We really need him to come into the team this week, he’s in really good form and it happens to be in Adelaide,” Worsfold said. 

“It’s wonderful for him, we’re really excited.

“He was having a great year in Adelaide this year, got the opportunity (to come to Essendon) and hasn’t missed a beat, really. He’s been in great form and I’m looking forward to seeing him out there.”

Final inclusion Patrick Ambrose has timed his return from a quad injury to perfection, replacing injured defender Michael Hurley (AC joint) after three weeks on the sidelines.

“It’s great timing for Paddy.

“We had other options to cover off ‘Hurls’ if required, but the fact that Paddy was fit and available is great for us, because he’s been having a very good year.”

The news wasn’t as positive for exciting forward Orazio Fantasia, who will not take his place in the line-up against the Crows.

Worsfold said Fantasia has been battling a minor hip concern and his withdrawal was to ensure the star can get the best out of himself in the remainder of the season.

“It’s an issue that has been ongoing, so the idea has been that we’ve done some work to try and give it a rest and see if it can actually get better.

“That’s part of the plan looking at how much footy is left in the season and where he was at, we need to grab some opportunities to freshen him up and see if we can get that a little bit better.

“He’ll carry a little bit of soreness throughout the remainder of the year, but we’ll get it to the point where it won’t impact him too much.”

Fantasia will not line up at Adelaide Oval on Friday. (Image: AFL Photos)

Fellow forward Jayden Laverde has been managed in a precautionary move following a small issue in the victory over the Kangaroos.

“He’s got a bit of a sore back that was pretty stiff in the second half last week, so we’re conscious of that as well; that there’s every chance that that would get sore during the game,” Worsfold.

“We really do have to just monitor how he’s tracking. He’s been building up some steady form for us, so it’s a shame to lose him for this week’s game, but I’m pretty confident he’ll bounce back.”

Worsfold is looking forward to the important clash with the Crows, who currently sit directly above the Bombers on percentage alone in seventh place on the ladder.

“They’re a very good team, we’ve seen them play some great footy this year and they’re still a team that wants to set themselves up for a big finals series.

“We’ve been building some solid form without being at our best yet, but we’re still working hard on trying to play more consistently and the way we want to play.

“We’ve stuck at games, we’ve shown a lot of grit in the last month or so and we want to continue to build on that.”

The first bounce is set for 7:20pm (ACST).