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Essendon will have two extra rookie list spots next season after asking the AFL for help four months ago, but missed out on a draft pick request and soft cap relief.<\/p>\n
The Bombers, who sacked coach Brad Scott<\/a> in May and have hired ex-player Mark McVeigh<\/a> to lead their next era, were hoping for an end-of-first-round selection to help supercharge their rebuild.<\/p>\n They won only two matches this year after a 6-17 record in 2025, when they suffered through a lengthy injury list.<\/p>\n The AFL will review this decision at the end of next year, after which it could recommend similar support for Essendon in 2028 and 2029.<\/p>\n Speaking on SEN on Tuesday, AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon said Greg Swann, Tom Harley and others at league headquarters had worked closely with the Bombers and decided this was the most appropriate assistance package for their situation.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat they need is some more experience there, so they\u2019ll have two additional rookie spots, which they can [use to] add experienced players onto their list,\u201d Dillon said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cEssendon asked for it, and we feel that they do need that. They have to continue to replenish through the draft, but they also … had players leave over the past couple of years, and I think they need some experience around them as well.\u201d<\/p>\n Swann said in a statement announcing the Bombers\u2019 assistance package that it was important to strive towards having a \u201ccompetitively balanced competition\u201d where fans felt their team could \u201cwin on any given day\u201d.<\/p>\n Essendon\u2019s assistance is not at the same level as recent recipients West Coast, North Melbourne and Gold Coast, although they endured a longer period at the bottom of the ladder.<\/p>\n Related Article More to come<\/p>\n Get around our AFL finals coverageSave<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n![\"Essendon](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/30b88929b6f79ef635e68a77dfbae2d97bc96bfb.jpeg\")
Essendon will receive two extra rookie list spots from the AFL.Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"James](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/b9c644b5c62e51fbc98e04831a233cb16274fb0cdbaf281341cfb4b4700d29b6.jpeg\")
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