Brent Stanton says the exposure Essendon’s young players received in 2016 could put their development a year ahead of schedule.

The absence of several of the Bombers seasoned stars opened the door for a host of young Dons to not only gain exposure at the top level but also perform key roles in front of big crowds.

“Turning a negative into a positive – those younger guys have been given opportunities they may not have previously,” Stanton said.

“It sort of fast tracked them one or two years.

“The advice and support we can provide them with in the pre-season next year is going to be invaluable.

“It’s going to be an exciting time to hopefully help and hopefully get success at the same time together.”

At times throughout the 2016 season the Dons midfield was stacked with ‘p-platers’ and the return of Essendon’s key midfield drivers will provide John Worsfold with more midfield muscle to rotate through the middle of the ground.

“They’ve unfortunately been put in difficult circumstances but it’s probably helped them grow a lot quicker than what they might have previously and given them a voice they might never have had,” Stanton said.

“That was the exciting part about coming back in and seeing how much they’ve matured and grown over the last 12 months.

“The general vibe of the group and the enthusiasm is fantastic and it’s great to be out there.”

Stanton was a first round draft selection at the end 2003 and made his debut in round one of 2004.

He played 15 games in his first year and played at least 19 in each of the 11 seasons that followed, until this year.

Stanton’s time away has reinforced how fleeting time in the AFL can be.

“To take some time away and, not reflect, but just not take this for granted because one day it will end and we’ve sort of had a little taste of that over the last ten months,” he said.

“We trained reasonably hard so the body copped a little bit of a battering, but the combative stuff and the mental stuff has been quite refreshing.”

With 248 games to his name, no player on the 2017 Essendon playing list will have played more games in the red and black than Stanton.

Brendon Goddard (289) and James Kelly (293) are closing in on their 300 game milestones but the bulk of their games' tally was built at other clubs.

Despite his experience and longevity, Stanton is looking to take his game to a new level.

“It’s getting as fit as you can but also managing your body,” he said.

“I think I’ve got a pretty good base now over 13 years so I don’t think I need to break any records at this time of the year.

“But I’m certainly looking to improve as a player – fitness wise, strength wise and also football ‘smarts’ wise as well, so there is a lot of learning.”