Essendon's non-selected players were put through their paces in a scratch match against the Western Bulldogs at one of Metricon Stadium's ovals on Friday.

Fifteen players featured across the three 20-minute quarters, with wingers Tom Cutler and Kobe Mutch returning from injury layoffs and key talls Sam Draper and James Stewart playing their second games back from lengthy absences.

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

Sam Draper

"He played ruck and forward and went for his marks, which was great to see. He was good in the ruck and progressed from last week, so it was another good result. He got three quarters (20 minutes each) in."

Ross McQuillan

"Ross was one of our better players. He was excellent. He defended very well in the air and his ground-ball work was good. He came off his direct opponent to win his own ball and he used it very well. Late in the game when the pressure was on, he had two really good one-on-one contests which saved certain goals. Another great result for Ross."

James Stewart

"His leading patterns were good, he went for his marks and took a few good ones. He probably could have kicked three or four, but he was unselfish and handed quite a few off to his teammates. It was his second game back and he played a lot of game-time."

Dylan Clarke

"'Clarkey' won a lot of ball, defended well as a midfielder and set up a lot of attacks. He's probably been our most consistent player over the four practice matches we've had."

Irving Mosquito

"It was another good game from 'Moz'. He played well as a forward, had a bit of work as an inside midfielder, and he played a quarter at half-back where he won his own ball, had running bounces and looked very dangerous. The boys were really excited to see him down there and he set up a lot of attacking moves by being an aggressive half-back."

Nick Bryan

"Nick was one of our better players. He pretty much played in the back pocket on a small and he did a fabulous job. His ground-ball work for a big bloke was elite - he'd pick up the ball, handball off the deck and make great decisions. We've got quite a few ruckmen in the team, but he embraced the move of playing in defence."

Aaron Francis

"Aaron started in defence, had a bit of midfield experience and then moved forward. He reads the game and intercepts well, and he used the ball well. It was a good game from him playing a lot of positions."

Tom Bellchambers

"He played forward and ruck, and did everything he had to. When he was forward, he competed strongly in the air and set up some goals for us."

Tom Cutler

"He got through the game unscathed and ran hard on the wing. He did all we needed him to do to get through the game, and it was a good effort."

Kobe Mutch

"'Mutchy' ran hard and put himself in good spots. He intercepted the ball in defence and had a lot of inside 50s, so he had a good wingman's game in helping to defend and attack. It was a really good return from him."

Matt Guelfi

"He ran hard again all day, up and back. He won his own ball and made good decisions with it."

Josh Begley

"He was similar to Guelfi, playing predominantly as a midfielder. He won his own ball, ran hard both ways and had a solid game. It's hard for midfielders in these types of games, but his work-rate was again super."

Brandon Zerk-Thatcher

"Another good game. He had best position on his man a lot, made good decisions as a defender and intercepted the ball a lot. He played a lot on Josh Schache, so that was a good match-up for him."

Noah Gown

"'Gowny' played forward. His timing was a little bit off again with his jumping, but he's getting used to that after an injury layoff. His leading patterns were good. We'll keep working on the marking side of things, but he's a good worker and he'll work hard on that during the week."

Henry Crauford

"'Crauf' had a good game. He played a lot of it down back on a small, a bit like Nick Bryan. It was weird seeing a big man chase little Bulldogs, but he committed himself very well and did some really good one-on-one things late in the game when the heat was on. He was strong in the air."