THE GOOD ZACH

So, after another other than impressive outing on the weekend against St Kilda, I feel the search for positives continues to challenge fans of the Essendon Football Club.

After all, I can’t count how many times I’ve read the words ‘new low’ or ‘rock bottom’ when pundits described the Bombers loss to the Saints. Firstly, to all those who’ve recently used those words … bitch please! This ain’t rock bottom, if anything, it’s a cushioned bottom. The club has a growing list of high-talent and will be adding even more at season’s end, with even more interesting NGA and father/son selections to come in 2027. Not to mention the cavalcade of free agents the club continues to be linked with. So, to all those numbnuts who think this is rock bottom, how about you go back and check out the news clipping on the day that Essendon found out that almost our entire team was suspended for the whole 2016 campaign. Now that’s rock bottom!

But, despite what I just said it is true that positives are to find this season. With compounding losses, failing senior talent, no coach and question marks beside a seemingly lengthening list of players, things are tough. However, if there’s a single positive to be found in the basket case that is the 2026 Essendon campaign, and this may surprise some of you, it’s the continued development of our white whale that is, Zach Reid.

I know that the boys on The Sash recently placed Reid in the animal category of a chicken, and I also know that there are sexier players that I could have chosen to highlight in this piece. Obviously, Nate Caddy continues to impress and another 3.3 goals on the weekend (now 30 on the season) was just another sliver of evidence that he will be a star. But in a year where the word ‘development’ has been at the forefront of discussions about the origins of the Bombers current woes, I think it’s easy to ignore the success that is Reid’s emergence in the 2026 backline.

To be honest, I think most people have undervalued the simple fact that he’s even on the field at all! I mean, let’s think about it. From the first moments he stepped foot in the Hangar, Reid has been dealt hit after hit. Glandular fever, hamstring tears, two lower back stress fractures, bone stress in his foot and a ruptured pectoral muscle just to balance out the list. In his 6th season in the league, it’s almost magic that he has been given the chances he has … and the contract extensions, too. Plenty of teams would have given up on the Zach Reid project along the way, citing his relentless injuries as evidence that his body just couldn’t handle the rigours of the AFL level.

But thankfully Essendon is not most clubs, for better or worse. I admit to having major doubts that Reid would ever make it. How many times can you watch a player breakdown before you call the wreckers? At the start of every season (and multiple times during ratshit years like we have right now) I like to draw up a starting-23 for the next season. Every year I’d put Reid at full back, certain that he’d finally be fit and firing and we’d have our key back. Well, we all know how rarely that happened.

But 2026 has been different.

Whether it be due to Reid’s body finally maturing or the introduction of Essendon’s new medical and high-performance team, or perhaps a combination of the two, Reid has so far done the unthinkable … played every single game. After rocketing back into prominence in 2025, Reid (like most of the Dons list last season) had his year killed off early. He played 10 games across 2025. Already, that felt huge. In 2026, he’s played all 16 games so far. For someone whose only accomplished 35 games in his career since debuting in 2021, playing almost half of them this season feels enormous. And when you add it onto last year’s 10 games played, it paints a picture of just how rooted his career has been up until recently.

Now am I certain that due to the writing of this piece, Reid will likely lose a leg to leprosy? Yes. But let’s see!

Adrian Dodoro cops a lot of justified flack for his underwhelming tenure as head of recruiting at Bomberland, but he did say something at the 2020 AFL draft that appears to have been spot on. Dodoro believed Zach Reid was the best of the three picks the Dons took that night. Nik Cox remains a curious character at the club with continued questions about where best to play him, and Archie Perkins weekly oscillates between lightly pleasing and then more firmly annoying the Essendon faithful. What are you, Perkins? So, although it’s taken six or so years to come true, Reid does appear to have grown into the pick of the litter.

Now, this isn’t to say that he’s setting the world on fire. Reid has had his fair share of underwhelming moments this season for the Dons. But who hasn’t? In the year where the backline has been bombarded so heavily, it’s likely the club will need to implement a PTSD wing to the Hangar, Reid has still been able to impress and in some games, excel!

Against Carlton only a few weeks back, Reid showed his prowess in the air with a 10-mark game, followed up with 21 disposals and even a goal late. But what has probably been one of the most satisfying elements of Reid’s development has been with ball in hand, going at a disposal efficiency of 86% across the 2026 season. Considering the ongoing trouble Essendon has with moving the ball out of our back half, clean use by hand and especially foot is like finding gold right now. Again, I will not dispute Reid continues to have issues in his game. He’s not overly quick nor does he look overly energetic, and I’d love to see his tackle numbers get up a smidge more … though I could say that of most of this year’s cohort!

But Reid is still coming from a long way back in his development. He has still only played 35 games across six seasons, whereas his fellow 2020 pick Perkins has reach beyond 100. For me, this makes Reid’s growth this year all the more impressive, and we should be excited for what he can accomplish in 2027. Because simply put, Reid will continue to develop and grow as a footballer so long as he can remain on the field, and not on the exercise bike.

And if this club can finally get this team going and surround the youth with some decent senior talent and leadership, imagine what kind of player Zach Reid can be. For me, that’s exciting.

This year has been a dog’s breakfast as Essendon fans, plain and simple. But if we can see behind the losses and look a little closer, those small points of light are starting to get brighter.

Imagine how bright they may be in the years to come.

Go Planes.