Essendon has injury concern of its own ahead of Friday night’s season-opener against Adelaide.

Small forward Orazio Fantasia underwent minor surgery two weeks ago after suffering friction in his knee, and will miss the Round One clash at Etihad Stadium.

After fracturing his foot in Essendon’s second JLT game, Martin Gleeson also underwent surgery, sidelining him for 12 – 14 weeks.

Fellow defender Patrick Ambrose was ruled out after fracturing his wrist at training last Friday. Mitch Brown has overcome a groin issue and could be a possible replacement for Ambrose.

Most recently, Essendon declared that midfielder David Myers will miss the game with calf tightness, while defender Ben McNiece’s sore hamstring will also keep him out.

There was a question mark over the fitness of midfielder Darcy Parish, after he was spotted at a scanning clinic on Monday. However, he trained with the main group on Tuesday morning and the Bombers are confident he will play despite the precautionary scans.

Travis Colyer (foot), Jayden Laverde (hamstring) and Kobe Mutch (knee) are all recovering from long-term injuries and won’t be available.

On Tuesday, the Crows ruled out three players including captain Taylor Walker.

Adelaide also announced two debutants, with third-year defender Tom Doedee and draftee Darcy Fogarty selected to play against Essendon.