Essendon coach Mark Thompson concedes Dyson Heppell is a difficult man to cover, but believes his side is capable of overcoming the star midfielder's absence to defeat Gold Coast on Saturday.
A win would secure a finals berth for the first time since since 2011 and give the Bombers an opportunity to claim their first finals victory in a decade.
Thompson flagged on Friday that Heppell would definitely be back for the September action, adamant that the broken hand he suffered at training this week did not spell the end of his season.
"It's a one-week injury at most ... a little break might do him good and we should be able to cover for him. That's what good teams do," Thompson said.
He was full of praise for Heppell, who is sixth-favourite to win the Brownlow Medal: "He's very, very close to [being] our best player. He's going to be hard to replace. It's a shame that it's happened at this time of year and at training."
The loss of Heppell will be partially offset by the inclusion of tall utility Jake Carlisle, who trained on both Wednesday and Friday after missing last week's narrow victory over West Coast with a back complaint.
Essendon has not lost to the Suns in their three meetings since the Queenslanders entered the competition in 2011. Gold Coast has fallen away badly after a commanding 7-2 start to the year but, sitting at 10-10, remains only percentage outside the top eight with two rounds to play.
Thompson emphasised the importance of not taking the Suns for granted, highlighting a number of their strengths. "Their talent, their speed, and they're still winning contested ball," he said. "Even though they're not winning matches, it's not as though we've put it down in the book as a big tick. There's still a lot of work to be done and we respect them."
As for his own team's aspirations, the dual Geelong premiership coach reiterated his players were keen to secure their spot in the finals after being denied by AFL sanctions last season.
"They are excited; they want it," he said. "They are desperate to play finals."
Thompson also acknowledged the versatility of a number of Bombers had played a part in driving the club to the edge of September football.
"I think a lot of it is about having midfielders who can play in other positions. We're blessed because Paddy Ryder can play in the ruck, down back, forward; [Michael] Hurley can play forward and back; Carlisle can play forward and back."
