3 minute read

Essendon veteran David Zaharakis could be sidelined for at least a few weeks after injuring his quad in Wednesday's AFL draw against Gold Coast.

Essendon's depleted forward stocks have taken another hit with veteran David Zaharakis looking at weeks on the sidelines with a quad injury.

The 30-year-old kicked three goals in Wednesday's 73-all draw with Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium but hurt his right leg when scoring his third of the night.

Zaharakis finished the game on the bench and Bombers coach John Worsfold said scans would be needed to determine the length of his absence.

"He's had a quad before ... but we'll get the exact diagnosis in the next day or so," Worsfold said.

"Highly unlikely to be available for the next few weeks."

The news is a blow the ninth-placed Bombers who are already missing Jake Stringer (ankle) and Joe Daniher (groin/calf) from their forward line.

Stringer is looking at a return within the next two or three weeks while Worsfold was happy with Daniher's progress.

"He's ramped up his volumes coming back from his calf that set him back a little bit, and hopefully he just keeps progressing," he said.

"When the time is right between Joe and our medical staff and everyone, we'll take the next step."

A positive from the draw was James Stewart marking his third game of the season with three goals.

After a long lay-off, the former Giant is starting to regain his confidence and form at AFL level.

"There's no real rocket science to understanding when a player has missed so much footy it takes a couple of weeks to really start to find his feet again," Worsfold said.

"It was good reward for him tonight (Wednesday), really good to see."

The Bombers face St Kilda at the Gabba on Sunday and will be hopeful Jacob Townsend (concussion) and Cale Hooker (calf) can return while key defender Michael Hurley and young ruck Sam Draper will both be available after being rested against the Suns.