It is positive news on the injury front at Windy Hill this week with James Hird and Courtney Johns both declared available for Essendon’s final practice match of the pre-season at Mildura on Friday afternoon.

Both Hird and Johns trained without any problems yesterday at Windy Hill, completing the majority of the session.

Hird received a kick to his calf in the early stages of last Friday nights win against Hawthorn, while Johns hurt his shoulder after landing awkwardly after a marking contest in the same game.

Jason Johnson will play his first practice match of the year against Richmond on Friday following surgery in the off season to fix a ruptured tendon in his foot.

With just weeks remaining until the season, it leaves only Dean Solomon, Dean Rioli and Jason Laycock on the injury list. Solomon is one week away from resuming after arthroscopic surgery on his knee to remove some loose cartilage, while Rioli and Laycock are still expected to be another two weeks on the sidelines.