Essendon are celebrating massive news with both a history making captaincy announcement and the return of a much-loved name running out in the red and black coming out of Tullamarine on the eve of round one.
In a club-first, the Bombers VFLW side will be lead out by Indigenous duo Mia-Rae Clifford and Courtney Ugle in 2023.
Essendon's seconds will be looking for back-to-back flags after downing Southern Saints by 35 points in last July's grand final.
It's far from uncharted territory for the pair, Clifford lifted the trophy as skipper in 2022 while Ugle returns to the post as skipper after exiting the role at the end of 2019.
Bombers head of VFLW Georgia Harvey told essendonfc.com both women "epitomise" the position.
"Mia-Rae and Courtney both epitomise what it means to be an Essendon person," Harvey said.
"While on-field they are vocal and lead by example, it is the off-field support that they provide to their teammates that really highlights their leadership capabilities."
The Bombers kick off their VFLW season against Box Hill on March 26.
In the meantime, one-half of Essendon's dream father-son draftee pair Alwyn Davey Jnr will make his debut against the Hawks on Sunday.
The son 100-game player Alwyn Davey was taken with pick 45 last year.
Davey Jr was handed his number 33 jumper by twin brother Jayden, who joined the club just nine picks later in last year's draft, on Wednesday.
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In a video posted to Essendon's website, the debutant revealed the news to his dad who calmly passed on a small piece of advice to his "emotional" son.
"Just take your chances and do it on the big stage now," Davey Snr said.
Davey Jr impressed selectors with a stellar campaign with Vic Metro last year and looks to bolster the Bombers' front half of the ground in his first year.
Jayden Davey, identified as a long-term project for the club, continues to recover from an ACL injury which spoiled his draft year.
