Kevin Sheedy to rally Essendon fans with jacket wave before Round 2 clash against Melbourne
ESSENDON legend Kevin Sheedy will be at the centre of the Bombers’ bold call to arms at the MCG on Saturday.
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ESSENDON legend Kevin Sheedy will be at the centre of the Bombers’ bold call to arms at the MCG on Saturday.
Sheedy, who steered Essendon to four flags in a record 635 games as coach, will rise from the Dons cheersquad before the Round 2 clash against Melbourne to wave his jacket.
The re-enactment of an iconic moment in Sheedy’s career will put the exclamation mark on the Bombers’ Make A Stand For Our Future campaign, which seeks to lift the spirits of the team, its banned players and fans.
Essendon is expecting thousands of fans to walk from Federation Square to the home of football at 12.30pm, carrying banners and waving flags.
Club greats Simon Madden, Ken Fraser, Jack Jones and Terry Daniher will march to the MCG, while several board members are also expected to take part.
At the ground Bombers fans will be encouraged to participate in a standing ovation and Essendon chant moments before the team runs out for its first home game of the year.
The plan is for captain Brendon Goddard to shake hands with Fraser, the Bombers’ oldest surviving premiership skipper.
The team will walk through a guard of honour formed by the past players before they break through the banner together to represent what the club has declared to be the “past, present and future” of the Bombers.
Essendon believes about half of its 12 banned players will be at the MCG.
Brent Stanton and Dyson Heppell are certain to be among them, while retired full-back Dustin Fletcher will also be there.
A countdown will be launched on the big screens while Sheedy encourages Bomber fans to wave their jackets, just as he did after a famous 1993 win over West Coast.
“We’ve had a really positive response from our fans and we think it’s important they get an opportunity to demonstrate their support publicly to the club and the players,” Essendon chief marketing officer Justin Rodski said.
“You can’t underestimate the passion and loyalty of the Essendon supporter.
“We’ve got a proud history, but we want to stand up for the future.
“When the team runs onto the MCG it will be a really powerful and symbolic moment with the past, present and future all represented.”
sam.edmund@news.com.au
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