Rebuilding Bombers full of admiration for rising Hawks

Essendon haven't won a final since 2004, and they lost six of their final seven games last season to crash to 11th on the ladder.

The Bombers have overhauled their list over the past two years and will unleash exciting debutant Isaac Kako against the Hawks, alongside former Lion Jaxon Prior.

Hawthorn's transformation from wooden-spoon contenders to premiership fancies has been an inspiration for many rebuilding sides.

The Hawks were 0-5 last year before making a barnstorming run all the way to the semi-finals.

They beat Sydney by 20 points last week in opening round  and are now the premiership favourites in some markets.

But Scott rightly pointed out it was by no means a quick rebuild for Hawthorn, who missed finals for five years in a row before breaking their drought last season. 

"It feels quick, but it's been a four- or five-year process to get to that point," Scott said.

"They would say, I assume, they're still developing and they've got to bridge the gap as well to the best.

"But they've done a terrific job, and all credit to them."

The Hawthorn team that beat Sydney last week featured 10 players who had arrived from rival clubs, including former Bombers star Massimo D'Ambrosio.

Importantly, Hawthorn didn't give up a glut of high draft picks along the way to get their targets, with the Hawks using six first-round picks at the draft between 2019 and 2023.

"Their list build, clearly we look at it. We look at every club," Scott said.

"What it tells you is there are different ways to skin a cat.

"The club that stands head and shoulders above everyone else is Geelong, for their ability to defy gravity for as long as they have, and defy AFL rule changes, defy list management changes to try to equalise the competition.

"Everyone does it differently."

Scott is optimistic about the youth coming through at Essendon, believing a lot of the hard work has already been done.

"In terms of major overhaul, the big pieces are largely in place," Scott said.

"But you never put your flag in the ground and say, 'we're done now'.

"Even though the competition is tight, we've still got a long way to go to bridge the gap of where we are and, say, where the Brisbane Lions are as the reigning premiers.

"We're thinking we've got a base now where we can go forward as quick as we possibly can.

"We're not waiting. We think we're in a good position."

Hawthorn have named midfielder Josh Ward to replace James Worpel, who will miss three to four weeks with an ankle injury. 

Essendon will start the season without the likes of Darcy Parish (back, three weeks), Peter Wright (ankle, four to six weeks), Nik Cox (concussion, indefinite) and Matt Guelfi (hamstring, eight to nine weeks).