Mark Harvey and John Worsfold sat in opposite coaches’ boxes in nine West Australian derbies.

Then Fremantle Coach, Harvey, edged out his West Coast rival in the head to head record, but in 2016 the duo that boast six premierships between them as players and senior coaches, will be side by side.

Harvey will be one of Worsfold’s three Line Coaches and will focus on the defensive side of the game plan.

“It’s a very detailed role,” Harvey said.

“John’s got a different perception of the way we’re going to defend so we have to adapt to that quite quickly.

“He’s very shrewd and calculated.

“He doesn’t want to complicate things at the moment.  I’m sure in January and February we’ll ramp up a lot of those areas that John wants to zone in on.

“At the moment he’s analysing everything from coaching, to game plan, to the players themselves.”

Worsfold isn’t the only new face at Essendon with 12 new players secured in the last month.

Matthew Leuenberger and Craig Bird landed at the Dons via the trade period, before the Essendon recruiting team selected some top-end talent at the National Draft.

“I think we drafted really well – specific to our needs,” Harvey said.

“Some of the areas we needed to improve in - like speed and agility, run and carry - I think we’ve addressed.

“If one or two of these players really step up they can just give a total different dimension to how the team presents itself to the opposition. 

“I’m looking forward to how they evolve over the next three months.  I’m not going to provide you with any insight as to whether they’ll be there for round one.  But let’s hope they’re putting a lot of pressure on the senior players.”