Essendon List and Recruiting Manager Adrian Dodoro says this season can help fast track the development of some of the younger players on the list.

The Bombers top pick in last November’s National Draft, Darcy Parish was recognised this week with a nomination for the AFL’s NAB Rising Star award.

The form of more seasoned youngsters Zach Merrett and Joe Daniher has also been eye catching.

Merrett is averaging 32 possessions and six tackles per game, while Daniher is ranked number one in the competition for contested marks.

Orazio Fantasia, Kyle Langford, Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti and Marty Gleeson have also played important roles throughout the opening weeks of the home and away season.

“If we can get some continuity with the group then you will always improve,” Dodoro said.

“I think by the end of this year we will have grown our younger players into bona fide AFL players.

“That’s what we’re hoping to achieve and I think we will achieve that.”

The Essendon team that defeated Melbourne last week included eight players aged 22 or under.

“I think we’re in the best shape we’ve been in for a number of years, in terms of our professionalism in the way we’re conducting ourselves,” Dodoro said.

“We’re looking forward – we’re concentrating on being successful on-field.

“At the end of the day, we’re still the Essendon Football Club, we’re still a strong brand, and we have still got marquee games like Dreamtime... Anzac Day, and we’ve won more premierships than any other Club, so we know what success looks like.”

Dodoro was charged with the task of re-establishing the playing list when 12 key players were ruled out for the season in January.

Over the next month, Dodoro and his recruiting team assembled a group of ten recruits that included players with premiership experience and players looking to reignite their AFL careers.

“It was difficult in that it was emotional that 12 boys had been suspended,” he said.

“We’re all very close here at the Club – we all get on extremely well.

“There is a lot of people that were hurt by what happened but we had to get on with it very quickly. 

“The AFL weren’t going to push the fixture back just to make us feel better.

“We targeted people that were going to help us and help our younger players and we targeted people that had great character – and all of them are terrific people.”