Countdown to Round 1, 2026. Day 52: Essendon Guernsey Number 52

With 52 days to go until Essendon’s Round 1 clash against Hawthorn, Don The Stat continues its daily countdown through the club’s guernsey history.

Guernsey Number 52 has been worn by three Essendon players at senior level, with appearances spread across multiple eras of the club’s history.

The first Bomber to wear the number was Allan Graco, who played eight senior games in 1971, kicking two goals.

The number next appeared in 1992, worn by Joe Misiti early in his Essendon career. Misiti played two senior games in Guernsey Number 52 as a teenager before switching to Number 24, where he would go on to play 236 games and become one of the club’s most influential players of the modern era.

The most recent wearer of Guernsey Number 52 is Jonathan Simpkin, who played four senior games in 2016, kicking one goal during a season played under extraordinary circumstances, with Essendon relying on top-up players to field a side.

Across its history, Guernsey Number 52 has been worn for 14 senior games, making it another example of a jumper defined by brief appearances rather than long-term ownership.

Next up: Day 51 and Jumper Number 51.