Coming off a 24-point win in against Hawthorn in front of 73,805 fans in Round 1, Essendon will be no pushover this Saturday night at the SCG.

Jake Stringer led the way for the Bombers with four goals in the win over the Hawks, while young midfielder Archie Perkins gathered 24 disposals along with 12 tackles.

The Bombers have enjoyed strong starts to the season in recent years, and the performance of their new recruits will please their fans.

Todd Goldstein had 41 hit outs while Jade Gresham booted a goal on debut for his new club.

The Bombers, however, will be without Mason Redman for the Swans clash who’s been suspended for one week for striking Jai Newcombe, while Zach Reid (hamstring) and Matt Guelfi (calf) will also miss.

This means Darcy Parish could make his return from a calf injury for his first match of the season, while Nick Hind is likely to come back into the senior side.

The last time the two teams met was in Round 20, 2023, when Sydney prevailed by just two points at Marvel Stadium.

In that match Zach Merrett was outstanding for the Bombers with 39 touches, while young Swans star Errol Gulden had 37 for Sydney.

After the Bombers win against Hawthorn, coach Brad Scott said the Swans will be a big test, especially for his developing midfield.

“I heard John Longmire talk about Isaac Heeney … he’s an All-Australian forward, but he’s clearly dominating through the midfield,” Scott said.

“I think Isaac’s now 27 … Perks (Archie Perkins) has got a fair way to go to sort of replicate what Isaac is doing, but he’s a similar type in terms of we really like him forward, but we like him in the midfield too.

“We know Stringer can (play in the middle), we know Caldwell and Perkins can do it … what we’re trying to do is build flexibility, so at different stages of the game we can pull different levers.”

First bounce on Saturday night is at 7.30pm at the SCG, with the Sydney Swans to March to the Match from Sydney Swans HQ at approximately 6.30pm.