Sport
23 May, 2026
Demons' celebrations start early with special training run
Dyson Heppell might have played more than 250 AFL games for Essendon, but this Saturday, he will be pulling on another-coloured jumper as he lines up for Horsham in the Wimmera Football Netball League.
Demons coach Jake Short will be hoping Heppell can help his side bank win number three for them this season as they come up against the Eagles, who sit one lower position then them on the ladder, in seventh.
Heppell, after being drafted in 2010, made his debut for the Bombers in round one 2011 before going on to play until 2024 with the black-and-red.
The appearance by Heppell will coincide with a couple of premiership reunions the club is hosting this week, and a big crowd is expected to celebrate both events.
Not only will the Demons players get to play alongside the former AFL star on Saturday but Heppell also joined training on Thursday evening.
Short said it was a big day for the club and everyone was excited.
"Not only to have the calibre of player that Dyson is running around for us on Saturday, but for him to give his time to us on Thursday at training is just huge," Short said.
"Our young group will reap the benefits all year from the week ahead."
Confirming the Demons were expecting a big crowd at City Oval, Short said the game would be followed by a club function so he was hoping his side could get a good result on the park.
However, he said the opposition was a bit of an unknown heading into the match.
"To be honest, I'm not familiar with Warrack's side," the coach said.
"They pushed Ararat a couple of weeks ago, as did we on the weekend, so based on that alone I think it'll be a great contest.
"It's a cliché, but we're just focused on ourselves.
“We played some good football in wet conditions on the weekend so we'll look to continue that into this week's game and aim to go into our double bye all square at 3-3."