FIVE Essendon captains walk into a restaurant …
Red and black royalty gathered at the Gilson in Melbourne’s inner city South Yarra on Wednesday, with the club’s past five permanent skippers meeting for the latest of their semi-regular catch-ups.
James Hird, Matthew Lloyd, Jobe Watson, Dyson Heppell and Zach Merrett spent the morning together as part of a meeting arranged to help guide the current skipper as he evolves into the role.
Merrett has long been thirsty for advice as a player and leader and finding ways to hone his captaincy. As he looks to spearhead the Bombers back up the ladder, he has been meeting with the group of Essendon legends over the past year or so.
The group bounces ideas around about leadership and look to help guide Merrett, 29, with advice and experiences from their own respective stints as captains, with Merrett seeking out the group over time for their guidance.
The Wednesday catch-up comes as Hird had been linked with a return to Essendon, but the ex-coach declared on Tuesday night he was not interested in the role.
James Hird, Matthew Lloyd and Dyson Heppell. Picture: AFL.com.au
The group of five have held Essendon’s full-time captaincy for nearly 30 years, with Hird taking on the role in 1998, then handing over to Lloyd for the 2006 season.
After Lloyd’s retirement at the end of 2009, Watson was handed the role, with the Bombers’ No.4 leading the club until the end of 2015.
Brendon Goddard was the Bombers’ interim skipper in 2016, when Merrett first captained the club as the third-youngest skipper in the club’s history whilst Goddard was injured, before Heppell took on the reins full-time in 2017.
Heppell handed over the skipper’s role to Merrett ahead of the 2023 season.
Together the five Essendon champions have combined for 1234 games, three premierships, 14 best and fairests and 11 All-Australian jumpers.
