Dons CEO praises list build, outlines trade plans

ESSENDON CEO Xavier Campbell is pleased with the club’s drafting and trading over the past three years.

The Bombers selected Nik Cox, Archie Perkins, Zach Reid and Ben Hobbs – all top 15 picks – in the 2020 and 2021 national drafts.

Nic Martin has proved an inspired selection via the pre-season draft, while mid-season draft pick Will Snelling finished third in the Essendon’s best and fairest last year.

Former Adelaide defender Jake Kelly was the club’s sole acquisition in last year’s trade period.

Campbell is excited by the prospect of Essendon accelerating their rebuild by being an active player in the trade period over the next 24 months.

“We believe we’ve got a really good foundation. We’ve brought in some excellent talent in the last 12 months – Cox, Perkins, Reid,” Campbell told Sportsday.

“We’ve made the most of our mid-season and pre-season drafting, [Sam] Durham and [Nic] Martin have shown excellent signs really early in their career, and I believe we’ve traded pretty well.

“[Jye] Caldwell and [Peter] Wright and even [Will] Snelling, they’re all good foundational players for us to build upon.

“It’s the most exciting opportunity for us to enhance and grow our list quickly through trade in this next 24 months.

“We’ve taken a very deliberate approach to build from the base up.”

Essendon GM of Football Josh Mahoney recently told SEN SA Breakfast the club has salary cap space and draft capital to be active in the trade period.

The Bombers’ football department will be the subject of a full-scale review.

– BY ALEX ZAIA/ SEN