Andrew Lovett a ‘long shot’ to feature for North Heidelberg in Northern Football League

NORTH Heidelberg coach Steve Saddington says it will be a “long shot” recruit Andrew Lovett will turn out for the Bulldogs this year.

Andrew Lovett on the burst for Essendon.

NORTH Heidelberg coach Steve Saddington says it will be a “long shot” recruit Andrew Lovett will turn out for the Bulldogs this year.

Lovett was cleared to Shelley Reserve just days before the June 30 deadline from Nepean league club Sorrento, but has featured in just three Division 2 reserves games.

The former Essendon speedster has just served a two-game suspension for a striking charge from the Diamond Creek fixture on July 22.

He was red-carded and accepted the set penalty of two weeks but could return this weekend against Lalor.

RELATED: Andrew Lovett joins Northern Football League club North Heidelberg

However, it leaves Lovett with just three home-and-away games to squeeze back into the table-topping Bulldogs outfit, who have dropped just one game for the season.

Andrew Lovett flies for a mark for Sunraysia club Red Cliffs last year. Picture: Supplied

“At this stage I think it is a big of a long shot of him coming back but stranger things have happened,” Saddington said.

“We’re just going to see how he goes, it has obviously been a stop-start season (for him) so we’re not really sure how he’ll go.

“We’ll just see how it pans out.”

Lovett started the season at Sorrento but played just five games for the Sharks before joining North Heidelberg through connections with Shane and Brent Harvey.

Saddington said the club was hoping to give Lovett a senior appearance before he was suspended.

“We were looking at it, he was just trying to get a run of games in,” he said.

“We thought he was pretty stiff to get a red card but you have to take it when you get them these days because you have to prove of not being negligent when you haven’t done anything wrong.

“To fight it would have got him three weeks and put him right on the back foot.”