Save Your Tears: Bombers Coach’s Playful Dig at Rival Clubs’ Injury Woes

Essendon coach Brad Scott has cheekily taken aim at rival clubs that have been voicing concerns over their injury lists, reminding everyone of the tough times the Bombers faced in 2025.

Scott’s remarks followed his team’s narrow defeat to Gold Coast on Saturday afternoon.

The match turned into a thrilling shootout that went down to the last moments, vastly different from the 95-point thrashing the Dons suffered against the Suns at the same ground just six months prior.

When questioned about the key differences between the Suns’ game in August and the clash in Round 6, and how much the group has developed, Scott promptly attributed it to the availability of players.

“It’s been rather amusing to hear some teams lamenting their player shortages, considering we had 20 out last year. So, let’s not shed too many tears,” Scott remarked.

Essendon faced one of the most significant injury crises in sports history last season, particularly impacting their taller players.

With nearly half their roster sidelined, the Dons went without a win from May until the end of the 2025 season, finally breaking their losing streak against Melbourne during Gather Round.

Clubs such as Adelaide, GWS, Port Adelaide, and the Western Bulldogs have encountered injury woes at the beginning of this season, but nothing on the scale of what the Dons experienced last year.

Scott then elaborated on the overall improvement of the group, especially in the past two weeks.

“There’s no doubt about our progress compared to last year,” Scott stated.

“We’re working diligently to close the gap between where we are and the dozen clubs that have their top players available and are performing well.”

“We still have a lot to accomplish, but we’ve seen positive signs in the last couple of weeks that have shown us what we want to achieve.”

While the Dons put up a valiant effort against one of the competition’s top teams in Gold Coast, Scott aims for his side to evolve and secure victories in such tight contests moving forward.

“We’re disappointed. We put ourselves in a position to compete, and while the game fluctuated, they were simply more clinical when it mattered,” Scott reflected.

“For the most part, we executed our game plan well, but we couldn’t maintain that across the entire match. I was pleased with the team’s fighting spirit, though.”

“We need to quickly advance from this point and finish the job next time.”

Star defender Jordan Ridley was forced to sit out the second half due to a calf issue, raising concern given his ongoing battle with soft tissue injuries.

Scott acknowledged they are still uncertain about any potential damage to Ridley’s calf.

“At this point, it’s unclear if there’s any injury, but he was experiencing tightness, and we adopt a no-risk policy with him. We simply don’t know yet,” Scott stated.

Essendon is set to clash with Collingwood in the traditional ANZAC Day blockbuster next Saturday.