The Sydney Swans return to the SCG for a Round 21 clash against Essendon on Saturday afternoon.
The Swans are officially out of the finals race with a month remaining in the home & away season, while the Bombers are sitting in 15th on the ladder after a largely forgettable season so far.
In Round 20 the Swans started well against the Giants but were overpowered by their cross-town rivals in the second half, eventually losing by 44 points. For the undermanned Bombers, they were on the receiving end of a 93-point thumping at the hands of the Western Bulldogs.
Swans coach Dean Cox has been forced to ring the changes for this one, with Jesse Dattoli (debut), Caiden Cleary, Peter Ladhams, Oli Florent and Tom McCartin named in the senior side. Will Hayward, Matt Roberts, Hayden McLean, Joel Hamling and Aaron Francis will miss the match. Crafty left footed Swan, Errol Gulden, will play his 100th AFL game against Essendon. The dual All Australian was originally taken with pick 32 in the 2020 draft.
Essendon has made four changes to its lineup, with the inclusion of debutant Jayden Nguyen. Returning to the side is forward Ben Hobbs, while Archer May and Xavier Duursma are also locked in to play against the Swans. Zak Johnson and Saad El-Hawli have been omitted. Jordan Ridley is out due to a minor hamstring strain and Nate Caddy will miss with a groin injury.
The last time these two sides met back in Round 9, it was Essendon prevailing in an upset. Wayward kicking was the enemy for the Swans who kicked 8.15 for the match, opposed to the Bombers 11.5. Sydney also smashed Essendon in the inside 50 count, 61-45.
Essendon coach Brad Scott says he’s going to use the next month to experiment with his squad as he looks ahead to 2026, starting with Saturday against Sydney.
“Unfortunately, the mathematics tells you, in our industry, there are more lows than highs. There's the elation and the joys of players being drafted in a mid-season draft, and then six months later, you're faced with the discussion as to whether they can stay on the list or not,” Scott said.
“It's a huge challenge and a bit of a juggling act at the moment, but again, you try to be as empathetic as you can to players and their careers, but the reality is we've got to make the decisions that are in the best interests of the Essendon Football Club, short, medium, long term.
“There's going to be a lot of hard decisions, but we've got to make them,” Scott said.
