AFL pre-season injury news: Darcy Moore hospitalised with bone infection
Collingwood will be without one of their guns for a chunk of the pre-season, but it shouldn’t affect their 2023 campaign.
AFL
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Star Collingwood defender Darcy Moore has been sidelined from pre-season training until early in the new year after being hospitalised with a bone infection.
Moore is recuperating at home after club medical staff found he had been suffering from osteomyelitis, an inflammation that occurs in the bone.
He was missing from training this week as he was being assessed in hospital and is unlikely to resume until the Magpies start training again in January.
Collingwood general manager of football Graham Wright said the club was confident it won’t be an ongoing issue for Moore heading into 2023, given how early the infection was detected.
“Our main priority is Darcy’s health and we will continue to support him as he recovers at home from the infection,” Wright said.
“We are grateful that this was picked up early by medical staff and as such, we are not expecting any long-term issues.”
Moore, 26, is one of the Magpies’ most important leaders, but the club is confident this setback won’t hinder his pre-season fitness.
ONE KING IS LOST, ANOTHER SOON TO BE REGAINED
The Saints have hit the track as they begin life without superstar forward Max King for the foreseeable future. Check out below some of the highlights and most notable action as they ramp up plans for 2023 under returning coach Ross Lyon.
REPATRIATED ROSS TAKES BACK SEAT
Ross Lyon appeared happy to sit back and let his assistant coaches take charge of training – a style he has adopted in the early stages of pre-season.
It’s no surprise Lyon trusts his assistants – Lenny Hayes and Brendon Goddard were key cogs in his old Saints side’s premiership challenges from 2009-11, Rob Harvey is a club legend and Corey Enright’s record speaks for itself – and it seems he will leave the micromanaging to them while he oversees each session.
New development coach Goddard, however, was consigned to watching alongside Lyon from the sidelines after being a little too involved with the first-to-fourth years in week one.
A source with knowledge of the session said Goddard was so excited to be back at Moorabbin that he tried to keep up with the young Saints during running drills, only to twinge his hamstring and pull up sore.
SAINTS GET SERIOUS ABOUT MATCH SIM
Much of Friday’s session was devoted to match simulation, which the Saints took so seriously they brought in AFL umpire Leigh Fisher to officiate it.
Fisher played 55 games as a St Kilda player through a seven-season career but turned his attention to umpiring after he was delisted in 2010.
The 38-year-old has since become one of the green team’s main fixtures during the home-and-away season, though it appears the Bayside local has maintained some connection with his old club.
Tom Campbell and Zaine Cordy were up and about ahead of an important pre-season for the pair with a key-tall vacancy to be left by the injured Max King in the early stages of next season.
Young midfielder Marcus Windhager looked supremely fit after pushing Wood in Monday’s time trial, and looks poised to elevate his status as a bargain of the 2021 draft – St Kilda wasn’t required to match a bid for the local talent until pick 47.
ROSS REKINDLES CONNECTION WITH OLD CREW
Every session, a group of 6-10 senior Saints fans watch on from the boundary.
They even attended last week’s time trial at a nearby athletics track despite the club never publicising when and where it would be held.
The group has watched on since Lyon’s first stint as St Kilda coach, and one of his first tasks of week-one pre-season was to reacquaint himself with the old loyal fans, shaking hands and sharing a chat to mark his return to the helm.
The group of old-timer Sainters welcomed him back with open arms, a source familiar with the exchange said.
STARS OFF TRACK
Skipper Jack Steele headlined a running group featuring Jade Gresham (PCL recovery) Zak Jones and Jimmy Webster, with the quartet completing repeat efforts while their teammates trained.
Steele has trained in earlier sessions but missed a chunk of 2022 after shoulder surgery, while Jones and Webster also looked keen on building increased fitness – the group ran at speed and didn’t appear restricted.
Nick Coffield (ACL recovery) ran separately in a sign he won’t return to main training as soon as Gresham.
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SUNS EXPECT YOUNG GUN BACK FOR OPENER AGAINST SWANS
Jon Ralph
Gold Coast star Ben King is on track to be in the Suns line-up for round 1 as the club’s medicos weigh a return date for Lachie Weller given his exceptional progress from an ACL tear.
King tore his ACL last February in a routine marking contest at training and is about to work back into training drills for a Suns side which will be transformed by his return.
Exciting young defender Wil Powell will be ready for round 1 after breaking his foot in June, while Connor Budarick’s second ACL tear in July means the Suns will take no risks with him.
But the prospect of the Suns working out how to blend in talls including King, Mabior Chol, Joel Jeffrey and Levi Casboult means they will be optimistic they can replace Izak Rankine’s goal power.
King’s brother Max recovered strongly from his own ACL tear in the final year of NAB League football and Suns football boss Wayne Campbell is optimistic about Ben’s progress.
The Suns will play two games against other clubs before their round 1 opener with the official pre-season contest in the early days of March likely to be his return clash.
“He is almost into drills now. He’s going well. He will play round 1, there is no doubt there,” Campbell said.
“The first scratch is three weeks out from round 1. Whether he plays in that or not I don’t know but certainly on track for round 1 at this stage. Almost from the moment he did it he was pretty positive about it. Whether he had seen his brother go through that and he knew what it was but he’s been really strong and resilient, and he’s done really well.”
Weller’s strong progress was reinforced by his work with American reconditioning and ACL specialist Bill Knowles, who recently spent a fortnight on the Gold Coast.
But the club will have to make a call that balances his risk of re-injury with his spectacular progress so far.
“Weller is flying. We will play it by ear but the positive is that he is going really well. There certainly won’t be any rush for him to play in round 1 just because it’s round 1. But I don’t think we are saying he won’t play.”
The Suns will hope Malcolm Rosas (14 goals in 15 games) takes another step alongside Ben Ainsworth (25 goals) but will need to find another small forward and could give more chances to Alex Sexton after his six-goal effort in round 22.
DOUBLE TROUBLE: STAR DOGGIE AND TIGER GO UNDER KNIFE
Jay Clark
Western Bulldogs’ star midfielder Adam Treloar faces a delayed start to pre-season training in another hit to the club’s star-studded engine room.
Treloar, 29, has undergone surgery on his ankle to fix a nagging problem he carried late last season and will be on light duties until the new year.
Treloar, from Collingwood and Greater Western Sydney, was eyeing a big shift back into more of a permanent onball role next season to help fill Josh Dunkley’s void.
Premiership midfielders Dunkley (Brisbane Lions) and Lachie Hunter (Melbourne) both departed the kennel in the exchange period after a disappointing season for the Dogs bowing out in the elimination final loss to Fremantle.
The summer blow will keep Treloar in the rehabilitation group until at least month when the Dogs hope to begin ramping up his training in preparation for the new season.
Forward Toby McLean has also undergone surgery on his hand after hurting it at training, while young star tall Sam Darcy is battling an infected knee.
Darcy’s infection was caused by an ingrown hair, meaning he should be able to rejoin main training before they depart for the Christmas break.
McLean is also expected to be back with the rest of the group in January.
But Treloar’s ankle is the main concern at the kennel as the club looks to bounce back into the top-four after loading up on talls Liam Jones and Rory Lobb in the trade period.
Treloar trained away from the main group this week after having a procedure on his ankle in September.
He was rotated heavily around the ground last season including stints on the wing and at half back but Treloar is keen to rejoin the on-ballers in 2023.
The former Magpie finished eighth in the club’s best-and-fairest last season after averaging 27 disposals across 22 matches.
Key forward Aaron Naughton is also expected to stay in an attacking role alongside Lobb and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan next year, with Jones, Alex Keath, Ryan Gardner and Darcy set to lead the defence.
Richmond midfielder Jack Graham faces a race against time to be fully fit for the season-opener after undergoing surgery on a troublesome toe injury.
The hard nut, who briefly considered a trade to Port Adelaide at season’s end, is already out of his moon boot but won’t start running until January.
It means the premiership star will be in a battle to win a midfield berth in the Round 1 clash against Carlton on Thursday, March 16 at the MCG.
Graham was eyeing more midfield time next season but moves to bring in Greater Western Sydney pair Jacob Hopper and Tim Taranto could push him back out to a forward flank.
Co-captain Dylan Grimes continues to make solid progress from the hamstring surgery which sidelined him for the finals series.
Grimes, 31, has resumed running after returning to training on Monday and should be ready to participate in the pre-season games in late February and early March.
The veteran defender is a priority for the Tigers’ strength and conditioning department as the club is keen for the important defender to avoid more hamstring issues next season.
New Richmond high performance manager Luke Meehan said Graham had been bothered by the toe injury throughout last season, but bravely battled on.
The Tigers’ medicos were hopeful it would improve over the off-season, but decided to put him under the knife after reporting more soreness upon his return to the club for pre-season.
“Jack is a victim of his own toughness,” Meehan said.
“He battled all year with his toe issue and he got to the end of the season and we gave it a rest, hoping it would improve.
“But (we) found out at the start of November that things weren’t improving and that he would need some intervention, so he had some surgery and it has gone really well.
“He is already out of his moon boot and will start running in January.
“He will have a big January and February and build into games at the start of the season.”
Graham toured Port Adelaide and met with coach Ken Hinkley in the trade period, but the Power switched focus when it was clear Jason Horne-Francis wanted to leave North Melbourne for Port.
It meant Graham, who was contracted at Richmond, was happy to continue his career at Punt Rd where he has been viewed as a potential future captain.
Richmond was bundled out of the finals with an elimination final loss to Brisbane at the Gabba and is keen to welcome back superstar Dustin Martin to full health after hamstring trouble late last season.
Martin has resumed training after a pair of injury-interrupted seasons.
Back-up ruckman Ivan Soldo also underwent wrist surgery but has rejoined teammates for skills training.
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SAINTS STAR OUT MONTHS WITH SHOULDER INJURY
Chris Cavanagh
St Kilda has been dealt an early pre-season blow with star young forward Max King set to be sent for shoulder surgery which will see him miss the start of the club’s 2023 campaign.
King left the training track early on Monday after hurting his left shoulder in a marking contest.
He will meet with a surgeon after scans on Tuesday showed he is likely to require a shoulder reconstruction.
“This is an extremely disappointing setback for Max,” Saints football boss Geoff Walsh said.
“He had come back for pre-season in really great condition, which is a credit to his professionalism; a trait we know will stand him in good stead as he works through his rehab over the next few months.
“The recovery and rehabilitation period for this injury will be a number of months, which we will provide updates on as he progresses through his rehab program – suffice to say his return to play will not be until the season is well underway.”
The injury is a major blow for the Saints as the club looks to climb back up the ladder next year under returning coach Ross Lyon.
King was St Kilda’s leading goalkicker this year with 52 majors, some 18 more than next-best Tim Membrey.
The 22-year-old was one of just four Saints to play every game this year.
King isn’t the only St Kilda player set for an interrupted pre-season.
Jack Billings had back surgery in September to correct a disc protrusion, while Jade Gresham (knee), Josh Battle (ankle) and Oscar Adams (back) are on light duties in the lead-up to Christmas.
Jack Hayes and Nick Coffield (both ACL injuries) are back running but are also yet to resume full training.
St Kilda hosts Fremantle in a Round 1 clash at Marvel Stadium on March 19.
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