St Kilda star Max King to miss the rest of season an all the latest injury news and updates

Max King is set for another bout of surgery on his troublesome knee, which will rule the Saints spearhead out for the season. Jay Clark has the details.

St Kilda spearhead Max King is headed for his third round of knee surgery this season after fresh scans revealed the source of his latest knee pain.

The goal kicker is set for a procedure which will end his season but give him the best chance of being ready to start next year in good shape.

While the continued setbacks this season have been an enormous disappointment and frustration for King, there is significant optimism around the next steps.

King travelled to Adelaide this week where he underwent a new type of scan which revealed a previously undetected issue relating to the medial or inside part of his knee joint.

Max King celebrates a goal last season. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images.

The Herald Sun last week revealed King had suffered another setback on a straight-line training run at Moorabbin which prompted the fresh probe.

Importantly, the new scans were able to reveal the problematic part of his knee joint while it was being manipulated, helping shed new light on the affected area.

Specialists believe a clean-up of the joint will help eradicate the pain and restriction he had been experiencing in his right knee in his comeback bid this month.

The Saint will likely need the rest of the AFL season to recover before taking a break over the off-season and setting his sights on getting fit for 2026.

The number four pick has not played a game this season after signing a bumper eight-year contract extension late last year, tying his future to the Saints.

But the club’s faith in his ability and application off the field has not waivered through what has been the most difficult part of his 83-game career.

King, 24, was considered one of the most promising young key forwards in the competition before the injury issues including a serious problem and knee complaint last year.

Max King will take time to get his knee right for 2026. Picture: Mark Stewart

He has kicked 159 goals, including a career-best haul of 52 goals and 41 behinds in 2022 which saw him finish equal seventh in the best-and-fairest award.

The 202cm forward is a key part of the club’s list build which the Saints are trying to enhance with bids for Carlton’s Tom De Koning, Port Adelaide playmaker Miles Bergman and GWS Giant Leek Aleer in this year’s exchange period.

St Kilda coach Ross Lyon said the club remained confident of fixing the “mechanical issue” in his knee.

“He was in a really good headspace, and then he just had a grab in the knee and decelerated from a run-through, not dissimilar to what he felt before,” Lyon said on AFL360.

“We thought we’d got to the root cause, but clearly we need to go do more investigation. It’s not (about the next) six weeks, it’s about (the next) six years … we would love him back, but we’ll just find a solution.”

ROOS TO RECEIVE REINFORCEMENTS AFTER THE BYE

— Josh Barnes

Geelong will return from its bye at near full-strength and with some good selection conundrums after Friday night’s “blip” of a loss to Brisbane.

Cats coach Chris Scott was happy to push an error-riddled 41-point loss to the Lions to the side on Friday, describing it as a “bit of a blip”, and his side will return from the bye with an extremely favourable run home.

Geelong’s round 18 away game against GWS is the only match on its slate to come against a genuine top eight aspirant, which will allow Scott and his coaching team plenty of time to bed down its best team.

Of best 23 players, only Sam De Koning (shoulder) will be out to start the run to September, with Jake Kolodjashnij (groin) also injured, but likely now behind youngster Connor O’Sullivan in the defensive pecking order anyway.

Sam De Koning will be the sole player missing from Geelong’s best 23 after the bye. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images.

Kolodjashnij had groin surgery on Thursday and the Cats will know more about when he could return in the next week, with Scott hopeful he could play a role in the back end.

Veteran Cam Guthrie (calf) should also be fit to play after the bye.

Leading in to the weekend, no team had lost more games to injury than Geelong this year, but the Cats have copped the brunt of that to younger players not in the senior selection mix.

Now they will spend the bye planning around the edges of selection, with Jack Bowes, Jed Bews, Ted Clohesy, Mitch Knevitt, Jhye Clark, Oli Wiltshire and uncapped George Stevens all hopeful of forcing their way in.

Bowes played just his second VFL game in Cats colours on Saturday after a hamstring issue and put his hand up high for selection, gathering a game-high 33 disposals, while Clohesy had 26 and two goals.

Jack Bowes kicks a goal in May. Picture: Michael Klein

Bews has played three senior games this year, and didn’t play until round 20 last season only to lock himself in to the side during finals.

Veteran Mitch Duncan struggled against the Lions with seven disposals before being tactically subbed out and remains on the fringe.

Ollie Henry has fallen right onto the edge of selection, and while he collected 10 disposals after coming on for Duncan against the Lions, blew a final chance to aid a Cats comeback when he didn’t see Tyson Stengle alone in the goalsquare early in the fourth quarter.

Henry’s numbers and impact has been well down on the player who kicked 78 goals across the previous two seasons, with Patrick Dangerfield’s forward presence potentially taking his spot as the third tall.

New face Jack Martin was thrown from half-back on Friday and spent more time forward against the Lions and while he collected 21 disposals, didn’t take his chances in front of goal.

Originally published as St Kilda star Max King to miss the rest of season an all the latest injury news and updates