Essendon have lost captain Dyson Heppell and defender Michael Hurley to injury while veteran tall Cale Hooker has been dropped for Saturday’s AFL clash with ladder leaders Port Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval.
The Bombers said Heppell will undergo surgery to fix an issue with a screw in the ankle he previously fractured in June.
Heppell’s latest setback comes in a season where he has played just three games, while Hurley has an inflamed ankle joint.
“(Heppell’s) ankle has still been a little bit irritated over the last couple of weeks,” Essendon coach John Worsfold told the club’s website.
“On investigation, there’s a screw that was put in his ankle when he had his initial surgery, which is causing some irritation. He’ll need some surgery to address that.”
Gun forward Joe Daniher will return from being rested against Geelong but Hooker has been dropped on form.
“It’s just around form. He’s not at the level we know he can play at,” Worsfold said.
“There’s been a number of games over short breaks, and we know he missed a big chunk of footy prior to that, so we felt he wasn’t going to be able to perform at the level we require.”
The Bombers made five changes with Irving Mosquito (ACL) and Mason Redman (omitted) also among the outs, while Tom Cutler, Brayden Ham, Mitch Hibberd and Andrew Phillips join Daniher in the inclusions.
Port Adelaide have recalled Pete Ladhams after his three-week COVID-19 protocol breach suspension, along with Brad Ebert and Riley Bonner.
The trio replace Zak Butters (suspension), Ryan Burton (leg) and Cam Sutcliffe (omitted).
Power coach Ken Hinkley said he was wary of the unpredictable Bombers.
“We know that their best will beat anyone and they’ve probably got their most powerful team almost out there at the moment with their forward half – if Daniher’s in the side, (Jake) Stringer’s in the side,” Hinkley said.
“So they’ve got some real power back in their side, they’re growing.
“Every team has their challenges and they’ve had a couple in the last couple of weeks.
“But the danger of a side like Essendon is their weapons are so strong, if you give them a look, you’re gonna get in trouble.”
