It was a frantic finish to the 2020 AFL trade period for the Bombers, who welcomed three recruits to the club and strengthened their draft hand.
While losing Joe Daniher (Brisbane - free agent), Adam Saad (Carlton) and Orazio Fantasia (Port Adelaide), Essendon secured the services of Jye Caldwell (GWS), Peter Wright (Gold Coast) and Nick Hind (St Kilda), finishing with three top-10 picks for the first time in club history.
Below is a wrap of each trade, with quotes from general manager of list and recruiting Adrian Dodoro.
Essendon's current draft selections: 6, 7, 8, 44, 77, 85, 87
TRADE #1 - Peter Wright
The deal: Essendon receives Wright (Gold Coast) in exchange for a future fourth-round pick.
Age: 24
Draft: Pick No.8, 2014 NAB AFL Draft from Calder Cannons
Games: 66
Goals: 85
Position: Forward/ruck
Strengths: Contested marking, goalkicking, versatility
Dodoro says:
"We obviously think Peter Wright has got his best years ahead of him. He’s a 202cm first-round draft pick and Rising Star nominee, who hit the ground running when he got into the AFL.
"Obviously, they’ve got Ben King up there (at Gold Coast) this year, who took that role that was probably his.
"We really think he could develop into a fantastic ruckman for our football club. We’re looking forward to developing two ruckmen in Draper and Peter Wright and having a tandem going and playing deep forward, then going in the ruck. I think it’s something we really targeted and wanted to achieve.
"Peter’s been doing a lot of work with Dean Solomon and ‘Solly’ has got him cherry ripe and in great fitness for us."
TRADE #2 - Adam Saad
The deal: Essendon receives picks 8 and 87 from Carlton in exchange for Saad, picks 48 and 78.
Dodoro says:
"We didn’t wasn’t to lose Adam. We’re very disappointed he left the club.
"Again, we wish him all the very best, but we did get pick No.8 for him, so we’ve got to now turn that into a really good player and I’m sure we’ll do that."
TRADE #3 - Orazio Fantasia
The deal: Essendon receives pick No.29 and Port Adelaide's future third-round pick in exchange for Fantasia and pick No.73.
Dodoro says:
"Orazio leaving helped us get Jye Caldwell over the line.
"It’s disappointing because Orazio’s been a fan favourite and a really good player for our club over a number of years.
"He wanted to go and be closer to his family and we wish him all the very best for the future."
TRADE #4 - Jye Caldwell
The deal: Essendon receives Caldwell (GWS), picks 44 and 74 in exchange for pick No.29 and a future second-round selection.
Age: 20
Draft: Pick No.11, 2018 NAB AFL Draft from Bendigo Pioneers
Games: 11
Goals: 1
Position: Midfielder
Strengths: Contested ball, tackling, speed
Dodoro says:
"Jye Caldwell is a really exciting young talent and we’re rapt to have him.
"We’ve had him in our sights since he was a young guy playing at Bendigo Pioneers. He can play inside, outside, he’s tough, he’s got speed and kicks the ball really well. He’s had some body issues with growth and GWS did a great job with getting him to a point where he’s ready to be a really good AFL player.
FOUR THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW: JYE CALDWELL
"They (Giants) put up a huge fight for him which is understandable because we rate him as well, but in the end we gave up two second-round picks and received a third and fourth round back. To get it done was good."
TRADE #5 - Nick Hind
The deal: Essendon receives Hind (St Kilda) and pick No.77 in exchange for picks 67 and 74.
Age: 26
Draft: Pick No.54, 2018 NAB AFL Draft from Essendon VFL
Games: 21
Goals: 17
Position: Defender/Forward
Strengths: Speed, goalkicking nous, versatility
Dodoro says:
"Nick Hind is one of those guys who’s going to add a lot of speed to our team. When he played in our VFL team, we actually wanted to pick him up in the draft that year, but the Saints got him just before us.
"We like him across half-back as a running defender, and losing 'Saady', we wanted to get some speed into the team. He’ll play that role and speaking to 'Truck' (senior coach Ben Rutten), he’s earmarked him for that role, and we think he’ll be able to really assist our forward transition."
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