The Bombers have re-signed young midfielder Archie Perkins
ARCHIE Perkins has signed on for two more years at Essendon, as the club’s growing group of young midfielders strive to lead the Bombers back to success.
The 22-year-old was due to come out of contract at the end of this year, but as reported on Gettable last month, Perkins has been in talks for a two-year deal in recent months.
‘Waiting for an occasion’: Nine years in the making, twins Harry and Ben McKay will finally square off
It’s been nine seasons in the making, but twin brothers Ben and Harry McKay will finally face off against each other on Sunday night when Carlton take on Essendon.
It’s a top of the table clash as both sides push to lock in a spot in not only the top eight, but the top four.
It’s also a clash that the McKay family has been nervously anticipating, with Blues power forward Harry McKay likely to line up on brother Ben, who is Essendon’s newest key defender after his trade out of North Melbourne in the pre-season.
Now, the brothers know they’ll both have to live up to expectations of a clash that’s been nearly a decade in the making.
“Jokingly, we’ve said before, that we’ve probably been waiting for a bit of an occasion,” Harry said on Monday.
“We’ll definitely be spending some time on each other, no doubt,” Ben said.
But his brother isn’t convinced the pair will actually match up on the night, turning to forward teammate Charlie Curnow instead.
“I think Charlie will be too good for you, he’ll probably kick 10. Then he’ll come to me, Harry McKay joked of his brother.
Despite all the hype, we’ve never seen the towering defender-forward duo ever take to the field together.
In 2019, while Harry played for the Blues, Ben wasn’t selected for his former club, North Melbourne.
A year later, Harry pulled out with knee soreness while his brother played.
In 2021, the Blues forward again missed the match, this time with toe soreness.
You’d think the pair made an appearance together in 2022, but to no avail, with Ben McKay this time suspended and missing the match.
Last season, the ex-Roos defender missed again with a foot injury.
Now, the pair will play in front of a sold-out MCG crowd on King’s Birthday eve.
As for the McKay family, the twins have got the formalities sorted.
“Trying to organise a corporate box for the game,” Ben said.
“Well, I organised it,” Harry said.
“Yeah, you did,” Ben replied.
Essendon sit in second on the ladder with an 8-3-1 record, while the Blues sit in fifth with an 8-4 record.
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