As Essendon gears up for a crucial finals push post-bye, coach Brad Scott remains cautious about an immediate return for key ruckman Sam Draper. Draper, who is back in full training after knee surgery, is expected to be available for the push to September. However, Scott hasn’t committed to an immediate return for Draper, citing strong performances from veteran Todd Goldstein and emerging talent Nic Bryan in Draper’s absence.
Essendon could also see the return of Mason Redman (hamstring), Xavier Duursma (quad), and Ben Hobbs (calf) for Sunday’s match against West Coast. Unfortunately, defender Kaine Baldwin is facing a setback with ankle soreness and could be out for a month.
Draper, who played only 14 games in an injury-riddled 2023, hasn’t featured since the Anzac Day draw with Collingwood in round 8 after undergoing an arthroscopy. Scott highlighted Draper’s solid recovery but did not confirm his return for Sunday’s game against West Coast.
“All we can do is prepare Sam the best we can,” Scott said on Tuesday. “He’s made a really solid return from his minor knee surgery and has been in main training for the last couple of weeks. We expect him to be available from this point on; it’s just a matter of when we pull the trigger.”
Scott acknowledged the strong contributions from Goldstein and Bryan, indicating that the decision on the ruck setup is not straightforward. “Nick Bryan has had limited opportunity but is a definite AFL ruckman and is pushing really hard for opportunity, and Goldstein has been really good for us as well. There’s clearly not a straight answer to that.”
Scott prefers to play two ruckmen when available but hasn’t committed to Draper or Goldstein as the primary ruckman. “We talk about horses for courses,” Scott told SEN. “We haven’t been in the position where we have had Draper, Goldstein, and Bryan all available. When we have, we have gone with two rucks, but that’s not set in stone.”
