The Red & Black Project

From his hometown of Perth in Western Australia, Tony 'The Budgie' Buhagiar reflects on his four seasons at Windy Hill (1981-84), which coincided with the rise of the Bombers under Kevin Sheedy. Buhagiar burst onto the VFL scene after a successful career with East Fremantle (1973-80), which included two premierships. Wearing the number 20 red and black guernsey, the diminiative rov

A product of Essendon's fruitful Wimmera recruiting zone during the 1970s, Russell Ellen played 35 games for the Bombers (1973-77). His time at Windy Hill coincided with the careers of champion ruckman, Graham Moss, and an emerging Simon Madden, meaning Ellen, a tall, lanky ruckman himself, was in and out of the senior team. He went on to play 108 games at West Perth in Western Aus

Enjoy a laugh with Bomber number 888, Bill Duckworth, one of Essendon's most popular players and funniest storytellers, as he reminisces about his 126 games in red and black (1982-90), which included 64 goals, two premierships (1984-85) and the 1984 Norm Smith Medal. The West Australian also represented his home state in State of Origin football (1987), then, after returning to WA,

Relive Dan Eddy's 2019 chat with Bomber number 936, Gary O'Donnell, which originally aired on Essendon's 'Fabric of the Essendon Football Club' podcast series celebrating the club's 150-year anniversary in 2022. One of Essendon's finest servants, O'Donnell toiled away in the under-19s and reserves for years before earning a senior game, and from there he never looked back. He won t

Relive Dan Eddy's 2019 chat with Bomber number 696, Alec Epis, which originally aired on Essendon's 'Fabric of the Essendon Football Club' podcast series celebrating the club's 150-year anniversary in 2022. Dubbed 'The Kookaburra' because he loved a chat - on and off the field! - Epis, recruited from Western Australia, is one of the Bombers' finest contributors. He played 180 games

Bomber #725, Charlie Payne, reflects on his 184-game career in red & black (1962-72), which included the 1962 & 1965 premierships. Such was Payne's popularity with the Essendon faithful, he even had a song penned in his honour!

AFL journeyman, Tony Delaney, Bomber #976, discusses his 15-game career in red and black (1993-94), plus being a member of Fremantle's inaugural side (1995-99, 28 games) and his final stint with St Kilda (2000-01, 33 games). Tony also talks about the rewarding work he does today with Indigenous youth in Western Australia.

Bomber number 989, Michael Prior, reflects on his childhood in Western Australia, the expectations of being the No. 3 overall pick in the 1992 AFL draft, his 90-game career at Essendon (1993-2000) and the West Coast Eagles (2001-02) and, more recently, his time as coach of the Eagles' AFLW team.

Bomber number 1011, Simon Eastaugh, discusses his time at Essendon (1998-2000) which coincided with a golden era for the club & included selection in the famous 1998 'Marshmallow' game & the victorious 1999 reserves Grand Final side. Limited to just 17 senior games in the red & black, the hard-working ruckman joined Fremantle (2001-02, 12 games) where he continues to wo

Bomber number 798, Laurie Moloney, discusses his upbringing in South Gippsland, being part of a famous premiership with Leongatha FNC (1970), then his 80-game career in red & black (1971-76).