Essendon recruit Josh Green is nearing a return to full training. 

A foot problem restricted Green to 11 games in his final season with Brisbane, before he joined the Bombers in November as a delisted free agent.

He stepped up his training load in the week before Christmas and will continue to do so now the team has re-commenced pre-season training.

“Everything is going well, the foot is feeling good and after January I’ll be into full training,” he said. 

“I’ll get a good base in and start to play some match simulation with the boys and see how they play the game which will be important going forward.”

Green will spend most of his time training with the forward group under the eye of Hayden Skipworth.

Green is a two-time leading goal kicker for the Brisbane Lions and adds to the Dons small forward depth. 

In the last 12 months Orazio Fantasia and Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti have shown they can create headaches for opposition defences. 

Travis Colyer’s return could add further pace inside the forward half, while Green has shown his ability to hit the scoreboard across his six seasons with the Lions. 

Despite the young talent in the Bombers forward mix; Green said it has been a midfielder that has impressed him most throughout his first pre-seasons as an Essendon player.

“Someone that goes under the radar is Zach Merrett,” Green said.

“He trains hard, sets the right example, so he’s been really good.

“He’s someone I didn’t know too much about but I knew he was a really good player … so it has been good to watch how he goes about things.”