Essendon midfielder Darcy Parish headlines the inclusions for the VFL Dons ahead of the clash with Williamstown on Saturday.

Parish will make his return through the VFL after being sidelined for three weeks with a calf injury.

The Bombers are looking to bounce back after a four point loss to Footscray before the bye round.

“Darcy obviously had a calf issue, he’s missed a couple of weeks so he will come back in with us,” Performance Coach Dan Jordan said.

“He has trained really strongly during the week, probably just missed AFL selection but it’s great to have him running around for us.”

With the depth throughout both Essendon sides, competition for spots is fierce.

David Myers and Matt Dea have also been named to line up for the Dons on Saturday.

“We have a few more coming back in so it’s a pretty healthy list and plenty to choose from certainly at AFL level which makes it hard for our VFL guys but a good situation to be in,” Jordan said.

After impressing performances in the VFL in the first half of the year, Kyle Langford and Shaun McKernan have been elevated into the senior side.

“It gives guys the opportunity to step up and play a role that they might not have had,” Jordan said.

“It provides a good opportunity for Aaron Francis, Matthew Leuenberger and our midfield to put their stamp on the game against a quality VFL side.”

Essendon is eighth on the ladder with four wins and five losses.

Williamstown is second with seven wins to its name. In the Seagulls last six games they have scored more than 100 points.

Arryn Siposs (17) and Ben Cavarra (15) have been prominent in front of goal for Williamstown.

Jordan said although the pair has dominated games throughout the season, there are a number of other Seagulls players to watch out for.

“They (Siposs and Cavarra) are getting some scores on the board but there are certainly a lot of guys up there, they are pretty flexible,” he said.

“They rotated 13 guys through their forward line last week so we will have some emphasis on those guys but it will be a team defence and we will see if we can really stop the ball getting in there as opposed to stopping them whilst they’re inside 50.

“I think Williamstown’s dominance has probably come from Nick Meese in the ruck, he has averaged 60 hit outs in his last few games.

“We’re hopeful with Matty Leuenberger and Sam Draper playing that we can at least make it even in there.

“We are number one in contested possession and they’re number two so it really should be a hot contest.”

The last time the two sides met was in round 19 last year when the Dons got on top, claiming an 18 point victory (119 to 101).

“You do look back and sort of have a look at what worked last time we played and what didn’t but obviously we have a completely different side,” Jordan said.

“We have probably had 11 or 12 changes from that day and I know that they have got a fair few as well.

“It would be nice to get a similar result but it’s a completely different ball game and they’re in really good form so we will have to be at our best.”

The game is at Windy Hill Oval fom 12pm on Saturday 24^th of June.