Jason Winderlich will not play in Saturday's clash with North Melbourne, after succumbing to hamstring tightness.

The 28-year-old was substituted out of the match against the Eagles, and is expected to miss at least a fortnight.

Meanwhile, Michael Hurley is hoping to be available as he recovers from an ankle injury.

The versatile key-position player has not played since Round 18.

“Hurls has stepped up his training in the last week. He will continue to do that this week and he is probably 60-40 with his approach for this week,” Essendon's football operations manager Steven Alessio told the club's website.

“It all depends on how he pulls up this week but he would definitely be available for the next week.”