ESSENDON is approaching round one with at least 15 players having experienced surgeries since their last competitive game.
And there may yet be another just 23 days out from the season opener against Fremantle.
Specialists are examining the extent of defender Patrick Ambrose's PCL injury that will rule him out of round one, while there is mixed news on his teammates from last year's elimination final horror show.
There has been no club hit harder on the injury front than the Bombers this pre-season.
By comparison, Brisbane escaped with no surgeries needed out of 2019.
PRE-SEASON FIXTURE Check out your team's Marsh Community Series games
Heading into last year, Melbourne had 13 off-season operations to key players and plummeted down the ladder after struggling to play catch-up from a 1-5 start.
Can the Bombers defy the odds from a summer of turmoil to break their September duck in John Worsfold's last year at the helm?
WHO’S FIT?
Devon Smith (knee) is finally pain-free and ready to recapture his best and fairest winning form of 2018 after surgery following round nine last year. He'll be joined by Dylan Shiel (knee) and Martin Gleeson (ankle) to face West Coast in Thursday night's Marsh Community Series after the pair had clean-ups post-season. Matt Guelfi (knee) will also be there after surgery to repair meniscus damage that ended his 2019 campaign in August and delayed his start to summer. Orazio Fantasia (hip/knee) has been trouble-free since Christmas, having recovered from back-to-back operations. Michael Hurley (shoulder) started training fully in January and will play 70-80 per cent of game time as captain, while David Zaharakis is back running freely after he spent December and January with the rehab group following August ankle surgery and then December knee surgery. Zach Merrett (foot soreness) missed parts of training in December but avoided surgery like Kobe Mutch (knee), who sat out of the final seven weeks of 2019. After parting ways with high performance boss Justin Crow at the end of 2019, the Bombers plucked Sean Murphy out of the Hawks to fill the position. His ability to get 21 games out of Tom Scully last year, a man many expected to miss the entire season, has excited Bombers players.
WHO WILL RUCK IN ROUND ONE?
Andrew Phillips has the inside running as he prepares to shoulder the load against the Eagles. Incumbent No.1 Tom Bellchambers (knee) remained with the rehab group at training on Tuesday after surgery three weeks ago. While he could feature against Geelong in the second pre-season game on March 9, he could fall down the pecking order after missing key weeks. Emerging big man Sam Draper (knee) did little on Tuesday after a planned clean-up on the knee that required ACL surgery last May. He should be back running inside the next fortnight with an eye to a return around May.
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WHEN WILL WE SEE THE SKIPPER?
Kept to stationary handballing on Tuesday, Dyson Heppell (foot) is working back slowly from September surgery on the injury that cost him continuity in 2019. After beginning light running in January, the 27-year-old had a screw removed from his foot in recent weeks as part of the gradual recovery. He is building fitness through cross training, but after hardly being sighted on the track this pre-season, it's hard to see him get up to face the Dockers. Mitch Hibberd (knee) would have been front of the queue to replace Heppell with a faultless preparation but has been with the rehab group since surgery in January. He had his biggest session on Tuesday and could in consideration to play some minutes against the Cats.
WHO’S LEFT IN ATTACK?
Joe Daniher (groin) enjoyed his biggest session on Tuesday following surgery in June but still remains a long way off joining full training. The wantaway Bomber ran and completed kicking drills for close to an hour on the club's second ground alongside the rehab group. James Stewart (groin) underwent a similar operation in August and like Daniher, headed to Ireland for off-season rehab. He has been told to ease into his program after just one VFL game in 2019 and remains some way off playing. Second-year key forward Noah Gown is still in a moon boot after discovering a stress fracture in his foot in December. Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti only missed a handful of sessions after a calf setback in early February.
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AND THE DEFENCE?
Cale Hooker (hip) is yet to complete a full session after post-season soreness was escalated to surgery in December. Assistant coach Mark Harvey is confident Hooker's experience will hold him in good stead, but it remains to be seen how much a second consecutive interrupted summer will impact the 31-year-old. Hooker looks likely to join Ambrose on the sidelines for round one, leaving the defence to be led by Hurley, Aaron Francis and Brandon Zerk-Thatcher. Draftee Lachlan Johnson wasn't included in the total of 15 but has been placed on the inactive list and will miss the entire 2020 season, arriving following surgery to repair his ACL. Some positive, non-injury related news could be on the way with Conor McKenna expected back at the club next week.
