Essendon's non-selected players were put through their paces in a scratch match against North Melbourne on the Gold Coast on Saturday.

Fifteen players featured across the four 20-minute quarters, with young ruckman Sam Draper making his comeback from a knee reconstruction and key forward James Stewart getting through his first hitout of 2020.

Development coach Leigh Tudor has reviewed each of the players' performances below.

Sam Draper

"It was really exciting to see him back playing. He started the game with a big hanger and got the boys up and about. He was nervous ahead of his first game in a while, but he started in the ruck, which Bellchambers let him do to get him going early. He worked hard, got his minutes in, pulled up well and is raring to go again. He won some good hitouts and spread well from the contest, so it was a good return for him."

James Stewart

"The boys were really excited to play with him. He led really hard and played on good players like Majak Daw. He presented well up the ground and got involved in the game. He could have been used a bit more as there were times where he was out in space and we missed him with a few kicks, but for his first-up return, he put in a good spell and will only get better."

Dylan Clarke

"Clarke was fantastic. It was a really good leader's game. We had Ned (Cahill), 'Moz' (Irving Mosquito) and a few different guys going through the midfield, and he organised them very well and showed strong leadership. Individually, he won his own ball, was hard at the contest and made really good decisions. His skill execution was among the best on the ground. He worked hard into defence, getting in line with the ball to cut off the supply to Majak Daw, who played at full-forward. He finished off with some goals at the other end as well, so overall I was very pleased with his performance."

Mason Redman

"He played on-ball as a midfielder. It's not a natural role for him, but he won plenty of his own ball, used it well and worked back to help the defenders. That would have given him a lot of confidence." 

Aaron Francis

"It's really hard for defenders in these shortened games with less numbers. Our defenders were slow to get going but did well after the first quarter. He had some good one-on-one contests where he beat his opponent, and he did everything he needed to."

Tom Bellchambers

"Really happy. His ruck-work was excellent and his care for the team was just awesome. He made sure he played with strength, like a big Essendon man should. It was important for a young team that he presented to play like that with a great attitude. He got a lot of the ball around the ground and was rewarded for his efforts." 

Matt Guelfi

"He wins his own ball, uses it well and works hard. Again, these games with reduced numbers are tough on the players as they don't get much of a break, but he just kept presenting and needs to keep working on the little things like all of us do. He got a lot of the ball and apart from a few missed kicks, used it pretty well. The conditions were tough in the wet, so there were excuses."

Ned Cahill

"Ned had a bit of midfield experience this week. He won his ball in close, and there were times when he could have held it in and he tried to handball, so that's a good learning experience for him. As a forward, he worked hard and his leading patterns were strong. He ended up kicking a bag, too."

Irving Mosquito

"It was great to see Moz play some midfield minutes. He looked comfortable there and had great support from Guelfi, Redman and Clarke in setting up. He won his own ball, exploded from contests and used the ball well. When he was playing as a forward, North sat on him a bit. It was like an AFL game for him, because they defended him so hard. Every time he got the ball, he had someone on him, but he handled that very well and overall this game was a good learning experience for him."

Noah Gown

"His timing was a little bit off against Collingwood but he got better at it against North. He tried to mark the ball at its highest point when there was a long ball coming in, and during faster attacks, he presented very well. He worked well with the other forwards and sets us up."

Ross McQuillan

"I'm really happy for Ross. He's a big learner. There were a few things we reviewed from last week's game, and then in the first contest against North, he immediately put into practice what he needed to implement. Another big tick for Ross, and he's just improving every session. He uses the ball well off half-back and makes good decisions."

Cian McBride

"It was a big job for Cian. He spent a bit of time on Nick Larkey and he was good. Like Ross, we were working on some specific body-on-body things that backmen need in their craft, and it was great to see him try to bring that out in the game. He's eager to learn and brings a lot of effort."

Brandon Zerk-Thatcher

"He pretty much played as our deepest back. It was tough early for our defenders and we were a bit off, but he tightened up and made it really tough for his opponent. He tries to get involved in attacks and doesn't just play as a dour defender. He ended up having a pretty good game."

Nick Bryan and Henry Crauford

"It was a weird one for Bryan and Crauford. It's the first time this year where we've had more players than the opposition and had to share a little bit. They were so open to it, and took turns in playing for the opposition, so they played on each other as forwards and backs and swapped teams each quarter. You'd imagine it'd be a pretty tough thing to do, but they took it in their stride, didn't complain and got great experience playing in positions they wouldn't normally play."