It wasn't a stock standard training session this afternoon at Windy Hill. There was not the usual 3pm skills session - instead players either hit the pool or went for a run around the Maribyrnong river. Adam Ramanauskas was one of the player's that spent time in the pool and Bomber coach Kevin Sheedy said the 22-year-old is likely to miss at least one match. ""He won't be on the track this week and I doubt if he will get up. At this stage he won't play and I think he will be out for at least one week,"" Sheedy said.

Ramanauskas was joined in the pool by teammates Dean Solomon, Danny Jacobs and Sean Wellman. While the senior squad was either training in the pool or doing running work, the Bendigo Bombers squad had a light weights session. The entire squad will have a 90 minutes skills session on Wednesday afternoon at Windy Hill.

Sheedy said the player's have been working exceptionally hard on the track in recent weeks and the coaching staff decided to give them a light night on the track. ""If we make it to the finals series we are three weeks away, so we have to make sure our player's are fresh coming into this period,"" Sheedy said.

Essendon faces the in-form Western Bulldogs this Sunday at The Dome and Sheedy said the match will be another tough encounter. ""The Western Bulldogs have had a few wins in recent weeks and are playing with a lot more confidence that earlier in the season. It is a danger game for us every week at the moment,"" Sheedy said.

Essendon will have close to a full-list to chose from for the round 19 match. At this stage Andrew Welsh and Adam Ramanauskas are both sidelined for the Western Bulldogs game and Joel Reynolds (osteitus pubis) and Jordan Bannister (broken clavicle) are still unavailable with long-term injuries.