Essendon will be missing two players for their AFL game with Carlton on Saturday night with just James Stewart deemed a “close contact” of Conor McKenna, who returned a positive test for Covid-19 last weekend.
The Bombers’ clash against the Blues at the MCG will go ahead as scheduled with fringe key forward Stewart the only other Bombers player, along with McKenna, forced into quarantine following a ruling from the Department of Health and Human Services.
The entire Essendon playing list was tested at Marvel Stadium on Monday.
Stewart, 26, missed almost all of the 2019 campaign with a groin injury and did not feature in the Bombers’ opening two wins this year against Fremantle and Sydney.
Essendon’s round-three clash with Melbourne last Sunday was postponed after McKenna’s positive test and has yet to be rescheduled.
There were fears that the Bombers could be without a host of players for the next fortnight as fellow defenders Adam Saad, Cale Hooker, Michael Hurley, Matt Guelfi, Jordan Ridley and Mason Redman had reportedly been in McKenna’s training group.
Full-contact training has since been banned at all clubs by the AFL in response to McKenna’s test result and with Covid-19 cases continuing to increase at concerning levels in Victoria.
Clubs will be permitted to continue contact training in groups of up to nine, and larger groups can still conduct ball movement drills without contact.
