Simon Goodwin clarifies Charlie Spargo injury, rules out shorter quarters despite 40-minute MCG marathon

A high hit that resulted in a one-match ban for Sydney captain Callum Mills didn’t deliver the blow that broke the shoulder of his victim.

Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin was quick to clarify a fractured scapula suffered by Charlie Spargo wasn’t a result of the incident for which Sydney captain Callum Mills received a suspension as he lamented more time on the sidelines for his premiership-winning small forward.

Spargo, who only played one game in 2024 and nine so far in 2025 after needing surgery to repair his achilles, could miss up to six weeks after hurting his shoulder against the Swans at the MCG on Sunday.

Mills was suspended for one game for rough conduct after an incident in the third quarter in which he jumped off the ground and made high contact with Spargo, who was subbed out of the game soon afterwards.

Callum Mills bumps Charlie Spargo high. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

Scans subsequently revealed the fracture to his shoulder blade, but Goodwin said it was a result of another incident just before the collision with Mills, hosing down any suggestions the ban should have been longer.

“It wasn’t that incident, it was 30 seconds to a minute before that when the ball rolled out of bounds,” Goodwin said on Wednesday.

“We shouldn’t relate it to that incident.”

After an eventful win over the Swans, Goodwin also confirmed his surprise that the final quarter went for a mammoth 39 minutes and 58 seconds as the two sides kicked 13 goals between them in the last stanza.

But Goodwin said he wasn’t an advocate for shorter quarters.

“It was a bit of an anomaly,” he said.

“I must admit I did look at the scoreboard and saw 39 minutes on the clock.

Jake Melksham kicks one of 13 final-quarter goals at the MCG. Picture: James Wiltshire/AFL Photos via Getty Images

“But they are not too long, I enjoy the fact that we take the game to being a real battle of endurance. It’s one of the great things about our game.

“Clearly, you don’t want the game going 39 or 40 minutes in a quarter, but I don’t think that’s happening too often.

“I love the game the way it is. I’m sure that powers that be are looking at how we make the game batter. I’ll move and adapt with that when the time comes, but right now I think the game is in great shape.”

The Demons are likely to get vice-captain Jack Viney back for Sunday’s clash with St Kilda in Alice Springs after overcoming concussion issues that have kept him sidelined since round 12.

“It’s very individualised, Jack has taken a little bit longer (to recover),” Goodwin said.

“But everything we’ve seen is he’s tracking towards playing this weekend.”

Originally published as Simon Goodwin clarifies Charlie Spargo injury, rules out shorter quarters despite 40-minute MCG marathon