{"id":325841,"date":"2025-12-03T22:13:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-03T22:13:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/325841\/"},"modified":"2025-12-03T22:13:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-03T22:13:11","slug":"axed-essendon-defender-expected-to-secure-afl-lifeline-afl-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/325841\/","title":{"rendered":"Axed Essendon defender “expected” to secure AFL lifeline – AFL News"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

Delisted Essendon midfielder Will Setterfield<\/a> is “expected” to secure a second chance at the Bombers.<\/p>\n

Setterfield was one of eight Dons players not offered a new deal at Tullamarine for 2026, as the Victorian club worked through an extensive list change following a disappointing campaign.<\/p>\n

The former GWS and Carlton midfielder was joined by in departing Essendon this off-season, with Alwyn Davey Jnr<\/a>\u00a0(delisted),\u00a0Sam Draper<\/a>\u00a0(Brisbane Lions<\/a>),\u00a0Todd Goldstein<\/a> (delisted), Ben Hobbs<\/a>\u00a0(delisted),\u00a0Jayden Laverde<\/a> (delisted), Luamon Lual<\/a>\u00a0(delisted),\u00a0Jye Menzie<\/a> (delisted),\u00a0Dylan Shiel<\/a> (delisted) and Oskar Smartt<\/a> (delisted) also heading out the door.<\/p>\n

The Bombers moved for Gold Coast wingman Brayden Fiorini<\/a> in the trade period before adding Sullivan Robey<\/a>, Dyson Sharp<\/a>, Jacob Farrow<\/a>, Hussien El Achkar<\/a> and Max Kondogiannis<\/a> through the draft. The club confirmed the signing of Cillian Bourke from Ireland as a category B rookie on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

In their decision to delist Setterfield in October, Essendon flagged that the 27-year-old would be considered via the draft or the Supplemental Selection Period.<\/p>\n

The Bombers ‘ busy draft haul left them with no flexibility to accommodate the former top-five pick, whose chances of another chance at AFL<\/a> level looked over.<\/p>\n

However, the recent knee injury to star Nic Martin<\/a> that has put a line through his 2026 campaign has positioned the Bombers with the ability to add to their squad by moving the gun utility to their inactive list.<\/p>\n

\"PartyMELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – APRIL 01: Jye Menzie of the Bombers (L) celebrates with Will Setterfield of the Bombers (C) after combining for a goal during the round three AFL match between St Kilda Saints and Essendon Bombers at Melbourne Cricket Ground, on April 01, 2023, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Pockett\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

That manoeuvre is set to see Setterfield return to the mix in the red and black, with AFL Media’s\u00a0Cal Twomey reporting that the big-bodied ball winner is in talks with the club over a deal for next year.<\/p>\n

Setterfield was a key piece of Essendon’s midfield group in 2025, playing 13 games before succumbing to a year-ending foot injury. Despite his limited exposure, Setterfield led the Dons for tackles in 2025, while also featuring in the top five for clearances.<\/p>\n

The re-listing of Setterfield would once again finalise Essendon’s list for next year, with clubs needing to confirm any SSP signings before the February 20 deadline.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Delisted Essendon midfielder Will Setterfield is “expected” to secure a second chance at the Bombers. Setterfield was one…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":325842,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-325841","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-afl","8":"tag-afl","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-australia","11":"tag-australian-football-league","12":"tag-australianfootballleague","13":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325841","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325841"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325841\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/325842"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325841"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325841"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}