AFL Injury news 2023: Carlton’s Harry McKay’s ACL fears allayed but still set for stint on sideline

Carlton star Harry McKay received good news on the knee injury he feared would end his season – but is still set for a sizeable stint on the sidelines.

Harry McKay will be sidelined by a knee injury – but will be back this season. Picture: Getty

Carlton star Harry McKay has avoided ACL damage but could miss a portion of the club’s charge towards September if the club’s fears of meniscus damage are confirmed.

McKay had scans on Sunday after being subbed out of the Blues’ latest powerhouse performance as Carlton demolished premiership contender Port Adelaide in a 50-point defeat.

The Blues on Saturday night were hopeful McKay’s season had not been ended by an ACL tear but the result of scans on Sunday will tell the tale.

McKay told Nine outside scans on Sunday he had been told he had not torn his ACL, and was hopeful he had only bone bruising.

Harry McKay will be sidelined by a knee injury – but will be back this season. Picture: Getty

McKay’s knee did not buckle as he landed in the first quarter incident, so Carlton is confident he has not done medial ligament or anterior cruciate ligament coverage.

But there are fears he could have cartilage damage, which could require arthroscopic surgery and potentially put him out for 4-6 weeks.

The Blues take on West Coast next week ahead of a round 20 clash against Collingwood, so it would seem extremely unlikely he would be risked even if he was cleared of structural damage against the league’s 18th-placed side.

Carlton’s offence looked slick and dangerous even without McKay in the side but the Blues will still need to win at least four of their final six games given they remain out of the eight.

Harry McKay is a pivotal member of the Blues attack. Picture: Getty

Blues coach Michael Voss on Sunday told ABC Radio the club did not fear ACL damage.

“We know it’s his knee. We will get it scanned and have more updates (on Monday),” Voss said.

“We will go through a process on who he needs to meet and be a little clearer. Rather than throw out small pieces of information, we will get it all together. It’s more minor (than the ACL) so we are hoping there is nothing structural there. The ACL is not a factor.”

Port Adelaide’s Scott Lycett is battling his own cartilage damage that could have sidelined him for a month if he needed surgery but he has played through the issue after only missing one week.

So the Blues will have to assess the range of possibilities including surgery if meniscus damage is confirmed.

McKay (C) sang the team song with his Carlton teammates after their win over Port Adelaide. Picture: Getty

Voss said the club’s huge increase in pressure across the ground was the No.1 factor that had turned around a season that at one stage had the senior coach under pressure.

“I think there has certainly been an adjustment around our ability to pressure,” he said.

“That has been the most significant change and you need a full buy-in on that with a collective. That is our intent on game day and clearly we have fixed something there. We have been able to get a significant shift. That has shifted our profile in every phase of the game. I am not just talking about a stoppage, we have better positions on the ground to be able to score from and coincidentally the scoreboard is starting to tick over.”

Originally published as AFL Injury news 2023: Carlton’s Harry McKay’s ACL fears allayed but still set for stint on sideline