VFL coach Hayden Skipworth said Winderlich was likely to play just a half of football in his return from a groin injury.
“He has done a lot of work in rehab and has been preparing for a little while, he probably could have played last week,” Skipworth said.
“He will probably only play a half this week.”
“He played a few games with us last year and his experience and knowledge is invaluable for the young guys.”
Speedy midfielder David Zaharakis will not be playing in the practice match after the club decided it would be more beneficial for him to take part in training.
Zaharakis played one and a half quarters as a substitute in the Dons Round 1 win over Adelaide last weekend.
“We have decided to train him with the main group as we are going to have a big session on Friday so he will train before the VFL have there run around.”
“Hopefully he gets through no worries and gets a bit more work into those legs.”
Essendon will field a team including 22 AFL listed players in Friday morning’s practice match with the club not having any players on the
injury list.
“It makes a healthy competition for spots and we have managed to put a reasonable list together that we are happy with over the off-season.”
