ESSENDON co-captain Bonnie Toogood will lend a hand in the coaches’ box on Friday night, after her failed attempt to overturn her two-match suspension at Tribunal.

Toogood has travelled with teammates for the Dreamtime in Darwin, despite her ban for a dangerous tackle on Zoe Wakfer in the fourth term of Essendon’s last-gasp five-point win over Waalitj Marawar.

“Obviously disappointing what the result was and having the two-match suspension. The last couple of days, I’ve actually had a lot of support from a lot of people like my teammates, just knowing that obviously I’m pretty disappointed, not playing and being out there,” Toogood said.

“There’s an element of letting the team down, that you can’t go out and impact for the crew, but it’s been nice to have that support from my teammates. And the result is what it is now. I know what the next two matches looks like in front of me, and (I can) get to work, training hard to make sure when I’m back for the St Kilda match, I’m raring to go.

“So disappointing, but I’m super grateful that I’m up here. The club brought me up still, can’t get rid of me that easily, and [I can] connect with community, which is really important.

“I won’t have a bench role, but I actually might make my way up into the coaches’ box, so that will be an interesting perspective, and seeing the ground and what’s been set up, and aiding particularly the forwards coach, Lachie Walker, in what we’re trying to implement out on the ground.

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“We can just move forward from it now, and I do want to say that we want to always protect the head and that’s really important, making sure that’s our priority. So understand what I’ve been dealt and it’s not a part of my game either.”

Toogood was speaking alongside teammate Amy Gaylor and Richmond opponents Katie Brennan and proud Indigenous woman Mackenzie Ford at the Dreamtime news conference.

Brennan confirmed Grace Egan (lacerated lip) didn’t make the trip up on the chartered flight after undergoing minor cosmetic surgery earlier this week, with draftee Sierra Grieves to make her debut in the midfielder’s stead.

The Richmond skipper is a member of the queer community and married wife Olivia last year, and said she applauded former West Coast defender Mitch Brown publicly coming out as bisexual earlier this week, the first male former/current AFL player to do so.

“All power to Mitch Brown and I hope he’s feeling the love, because he’s incredibly courageous and I feel like it’s just so exciting for our industry moving forward that someone has had the courage to step out and to speak his truth and to be himself,” Brennan said.

“It’s just so empowering for the generations coming through, for young people, for people in general, just to be able to feel comfortable in their own environment.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do. That’s the biggest thing. But all power to Mitch, and he’s really strong and really brave.”

Head of AFLNT Sam Gibson said tickets to the showcase event at TIO Stadium were selling quickly.

“We’re thrilled to be hosting the AFLW Dreamtime game again here in Darwin this Friday night. Last year’s game was a thrilling contest between Richmond and Essendon and ultimately ended in a draw. It was also one of the most attended and watched AFLW games of the season, and we’re expecting another bumper crowd here at TIO Stadium again on Friday night,” Gibson said.

“Matches like this are more than just about football, they’re about inspiring the next generation. It’s well noted that here in the Territory, growth in women’s football has been massive over the last five years, and our participation rates per capita are leading the country.

“It’s important for our young Territorians, especially for those in our Indigenous programs across the Northern Territory, to be able to see role models like we’ll see out on TIO Stadium on Friday night, here in their backyard, and for them to be able to see the pathways that ultimately are in front of them as footballers and young Territorians.”

AFL national diversity talent programs manager Narelle Long said participation in the under-16s Woomeras (girls) and Boomerangs (boys) Indigenous programs had doubled over the past three years.

“Matches like Dreamtime are incredibly important and special for the young Indigenous women and girls involved in our talent pathway programs. They provide that powerful inspiration and highlight the pathways to them in what football offers, both on and off the field,” Long said.

“As part of our AFL’s National Indigenous Talent Programs, we aim to provide a really culturally safe environment, that one that highlights football experiences for our First Nations young women across the country. We want to attract, retain, develop, and transition them into our AFL pathway programs.”