Juniors from the Riddell District Football League enjoyed a rare opportunity to use an AFL club’s facilities.
The league’s junior academy squads spent the past two Mondays training at Essendon’s new high-performance centre at Melbourne Airport.
Under-12 academy coach Peter Wood said players were ‘‘jumping out of their skins’’ ahead of the training sessions. The initiative is part of a partnership between the league and Essendon started in 2011.
“I think that everyone aspires to be an AFL footballer,” Wood said.
“It gives them a little more drive to see what they can achieve.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience for a lot of these kids, as some won’t get to experience it again.”
