EDFL scores: Westmeadows Division 1 star suffers serious injury

One of the big names in EDFL Division 1 faces months on the sidelines in a hammer blow to his club’s flag hopes.

Westmeadows star Robbie Castello will be sidelined long-term. Picture: Jamie Morey

Westmeadows skipper Robbie Castello will spend months on the sidelines after snapping his achilles in a devastating blow to the club’s premiership hopes.

Castello, widely regarded as the leading player in Essendon District Football League Division 1, sustained the injury at work.

The firefighter “landed awkwardly” while exiting a truck earlier this month and a return to the field in the latter stages of the season is the best-case scenario.

“I think he’s going in on Wednesday to have surgery and they (doctors) have said just to go through your rehab,” Westmeadows president Grant Smith said.

“He’s a chance of coming back late if we’re still in (finals contention).

“If we’re sitting fifth or sixth, maybe he’ll just park it for this year and give himself all the time (to recover).

“But if we’re close, he’s saying he’s going to have a crack at it.”

Castello was crowned the Hutchison medallist for the best-and-fairest player in Division 1 in 2019.

The classy veteran had started this season strongly, bagging 15 goals from five games, including a haul of seven against Rupertswood in Round 2.

While the former Werribee VFL captain is a star of the competition, his leadership in guiding a young Tigers team should not be ignored.

“We’ve spoken to him about the role he can play without actually playing games of footy for us, how much we’d love to keep him around the club and how important he is to us,” Smith said.

“But he’s a quality person, brings quality values and you just can’t afford to lose him in any role that he would play.”

Josh Flower and Clayton Campbell will take over as co-captains in Castello’s absence.

Westmeadows, which finished fourth two years ago, sits sixth on the ladder with a 3-3 record and is two games astern of third-ranked Tullamarine.

The club was outclassed by West Coburg at Shore Reserve on Saturday, suffering a 54-point defeat as ex-AFL defender Lynden bagged six goals in a best-afield performance.

Jayden Ranno (four goals), George Nabbout and Dylan Ryan led the way for the Tigers.

“They’re always hard to beat down there, whether they’re playing well or not,” Smith said.

“We played a whole bunch of kids again who are just getting more exposure to Premier Division and AFL footballers. Not all the wins come on the scoreboard I guess.”

Westmeadows will host Roxburgh Park in Round 7.