Bombers avoid ‘catastrophe’ after virus outbreak

Essendon manager Brad Scott revealed the nine enactment Covid-style measures successful spot this week and had “avoided catastrophe” aft a microorganism swept done his unit with expectations his broadside won’t beryllium impacted for Sunday’s clash with the Gold Coast.

Preparations for the clash with the Suns had been impacted arsenic Scott worked with a “skeleton staff” to get his team, which is 2nd connected the ladder having won 8 games done the opening 11 rounds, acceptable for the travel north.

Measures included players moving successful smaller grooming groups earlier reverting to mean connected Thursday with the manager insisting nary players had been caught successful the outbreak.

“If there’s a metallic lining retired of the Covid epoch and hubs and protocols, we’ve surely enacted our protocols precise rapidly to minimise the risk,” Scott said connected Thursday.

“All our players are good but we’ve got a skeleton unit due to the fact that we’ve kept our unit away.

“Enacting the protocols was beauteous speedy and beauteous swift and, interaction wood, we’ve avoided catastrophe.

“It’s much separating staff. We’ve had a spot of a antithetic week successful presumption of meetings and however we’ve structured that. But it’s really been truly awesome to ticker our players accommodate to antithetic circumstances.

“It’s besides a motion that our players privation to bash more, not less. I’ve been truly impressed arsenic to however they adapted what we acceptable yup this week.

“Every week conscionable throws up a antithetic challenge.”

Essendon has lone mislaid 2 of 14 clashes with the Gold Coast, hasn’t mislaid to the Suns since 2014 and is connected a blistery tally of signifier which has created expectations of breaking a finals winning drought which dates backmost to 2004.

Despite the hype, Scott said helium was contented to beryllium “boring”, for his players astatine least, with nary thought of thing beyond the task astatine manus with nary usage of the “F word” conscionable yet.

“Not the 1 you’re reasoning of,” helium said.

“It sounds boring, but each those things down the way volition beryllium the sum full of what we bash betwixt present and that point.

“We’re conscionable focused connected the process that we spell done and that process has held america successful bully stead until this constituent successful the year.

“The hazard for america is we instrumentality our eyes disconnected what’s important close present and commencement reasoning oregon adjacent imagining what is possible.

“We privation our fans to beryllium excited, we provender disconnected that excitement. But our fans privation america to beryllium focused.”

Harrison Jones volition instrumentality from a one-match suspension, which could mean Nate Caddy misses retired contempt an awesome debut successful past weekend’s hard fought triumph implicit Richmond.

Nik Cox has besides been fixed the all-clear aft being subbed retired of the Tigers clash with a hamstring issue.