Pre-Season Patreon Q&A: List Balance, Free Agents & Can We Win a Final in 2026?

The Bombers are undefeated in 2026…after one practice match. Ahead of the season, we jumped on with our Patreon subscribers for a live pre-season Q&A and tackled the big questions shaping Essendon’s year. We covered: Where to play Zach Merrett for maximum impact 🏃‍♂️ The Ridley injury debate and backline balance Why we’re more bullish on Essendon than Richmond in 2026 Scores from turnover and the stat we don’t talk about enough If we could go all-in on one free agent… Whether this list is capable of winning a final And the big one. Can Brad Scott take Essendon to September success? Thanks to our Patrons for jumping on live Mid-season bye Q&A coming up later in the year. Stay safe. Go Dons. 🔴⚫️ ____ Watch 'The Moment that Mattered' and listen to our Post Match First Thoughts exclusively on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/donthestat Don The Stat Website: https://www.donthestat.com/ Follow Us on Twitter and Bluesky: Jono at twitter.com/JonathanJWalsh / https://bsky.app/profile/jonathanjwalsh.bsky.social Ian at twitter.com/Kyptastic1 / https://bsky.app/profile/kyptastic.bsky.social Don The Stat Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/donthestat Follow Don The Stat on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/donthestat?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==