Up to 17 Essendon players will fly to the United States for a two-week training camp in Arizona.
Andrew McGrath and Jordan Ridley have led the charge as the Bombers look to return fitter for the 2024 season, after their 2023 campaign fizzled out.
The camp has been player driven, though likely influenced by Brad Scott’s pointed post Round 24 comments calling for the group to be in the best shape possible for pre-season training.
“The recency bias is real. In a perverse way, the players leave with a sick feeling in their stomach and that should drive their off-season,” Scott told reporters after their Round 24 loss to Collingwood.
“The observations of the last nine to 12 months is nowhere near where it needs to be, so we'll get that right.”
Garry Lyon believes the playing group has simply read the room provided by the coach.
“I think it’s fantastic and they’ve said it wasn’t Brad Scott driving it and that it was the players driving it, but you’ve got to read the room too,” Lyon told SEN Breakfast.
“The playing group have to read the room at some stage … I’m sure Brad some something to the effect of, ‘you best come back in the best possible shape’, and it would appear to me as though these boys have gone, ‘righto, there’s the challenge from our coach’.
“(Scott has) had a year to have a look at the joint and see where they all sit in terms of work-rate, training standards, professionalism, all those different things and his message on the back of a particularly disappointing end to the season was ‘you best come back pretty fit’.”
At this stage, it’s unclear whether star forward Jake Stringer, who has had his fitness and physique questioned at times, will be making the trip to the training camp.
Stringer underwent foot surgery in August to deal with planta fasciitis and while Essendon fans would be keen to see the 29-year-old in Arizona, Lyon isn’t as fussed.
“Essendon fans would love to see Jake Stringer over there as well, but you don’t have to fly to Arizona to give yourself the best opportunity to be the best player you can be coming back for pre-season,” said Lyon.
“Some players just mightn’t want to do that (fly overseas for a pre-season training camp).
“Going or not going won’t preclude Jake Stringer from returning in the best possible shape. Him not going doesn’t put a line through him in terms of his professionalism. He might be doing his own stuff at Mt Buller.
“History would say he needs some sort of circuit breaker to get in amongst the peer group and show his stuff, but everyone can prepare differently.”
Kane Cornes called out Essendon players this time last year, with 35 of them heading to Ibiza for a summer vacation.
This trip to Arizona likely shows a change in culture under new coach Scott.