Essendon will welcome back six returning players for the blockbuster clash with Hawthorn on Saturday night.
Dyson Heppell, Michael Hurley, Travis Colyer, Cale Hooker, Jobe Watson and Brent Stanton will play their first game for the Club in more than 12 months.
“They’ve prepared well, they’re going to be nervous but that’s a big part of what’s exciting about playing AFL footy and playing in big games,” Coach John Worsfold said.
“This is a massive game for the Essendon Football Club. It’s a big game for Hawthorn – it means a lot to them. It’s going to be a cracker of a game.
“We just can’t wait to get out there.”
Hooker played his first competitive match of the pre-season last week in a VFL practice match.
He performed strongly and recovered well leaving Worsfold confident his key forward will be able to perform in the season opener.
“He’s had a really solid pre-season and he’s done a mountain of work,” Worsfold said.
“He hasn’t done the amount of match practice that the other guys have but his fitness work has been awesome.”
Number one draft pick Andrew McGrath has been named to make his AFL debut, while former Brisbane player Josh Green will make his Bombers debut.
“We rested him [Green] in the last JLT game because he was still carrying over a bit of soreness from the previous game,” Worsfold said.
“We knew we had the opportunity to play him in the Cats VFL game and he came through that fine.”
Essendon members and supporters will march in unison to the MCG ahead of the first bounce.
More than 80,000 fans are expected to be in attendance by the time the ball is bounced.
“The march adds to the excitement and you feel the energy in the ground,” Worsfold said.
“When we eventually come our onto the ground I think the supporters will be at a heightened level of anticipation because of the march.
“They’re all pumped and excited and the players do feel that.”
The team:
B: Mark Baguley, Michael Hartley, Andrew McGrath
HB: Brendon Goddard, Michael Hurley, Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti
C: Orazio Fantasia, Dyson Heppell, James Kelly
HF: Travis Colyer, Cale Hooker, Zach Merrett
F: Shaun McKernan, Joe Daniher, Josh Green
R: Patrick Ambrose, Jobe Watson, David Zaharakis
I: Darcy Parish, Brent Stanton, Martin Gleeson, Kyle Langford
E: James Stewart, Ben Howlett, Matt Dea
