AFL 2022: All the latest injury news and updates for round 14
A Bulldogs small forward is in the mix after a gruesome injury, but one of the club’s biggest stars has been ruled out.
AFL News
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL News. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Western Bulldogs ruckman Tim English has been ruled out of Friday night’s clash against Hawthorn after experiencing delayed concussion symptoms.
The Bulldogs revealed on Monday English experienced a delayed headache following the match and would enter the league’s 12-day concussion protocols.
But livewire forward Cody Weightman remains a chance to play against the Hawks at Marvel Stadium, despite suffering some ligament damage after his gruesome elbow dislocation in the win over the Giants.
And the Bulldogs confirmed defender Taylor Duryea would be sidelined for up to two months after suffering a “high-grade” MCL injury.
Watch every blockbuster AFL match this weekend Live & Ad-Break Free In-Play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Try 14-Days Free Now >
Bulldogs head of sports medicine Chris Bell said English had not shown any symptoms during the match but they developed on Sunday.
“Tim English was involved in some heavy impact incidents throughout the game,” Bell said.
“He was fine during the game, but developed a headache afterwards. Yesterday, Tim developed some signs and symptoms that are consistent with a delayed concussion.
“He will now enter our concussion protocols and won’t play this weekend.
“Always wanting to be conservative in this space, Tim will work with our doctor over the next couple of days to determine his return-to-play plan.”
Following his five-goal haul against the Giants, Weightman could still have a chance to face the Hawks but will have to get through a main training session first and see how it responds.
The exciting forward dislocated his left elbow when he landed awkwardly after colliding with teammate Josh Schache in the third quarter.
Grimacing in pain as he cradled his arm leaving the field, Weightman bravely returned to play after having his elbow heavily strapped.
Scans revealed he damaged some ligaments but was cleared of structural harm.
“In the second half of the game, Cody landed on his elbow and hyperextended it. This caused the joint to dislocate,” Bell said.
“We were able to relocate it, which significantly improved his acute symptoms. We stabilised the joint with tape, and he courageously returned to play.
“Scans have confirmed that he has damaged some ligaments, but the bone structure of the joint is okay.
“We will work through a process with Cody this week to determine when he returns to play.”
Duryea was subbed out of the match in the first quarter, suffering medial ligament damage to his knee.
“When he landed, the opposition fell across the outside part of his knee, which overstretched the ligament on the inside part,” Bell said.
“This caused a high-grade injury to the MCG - his ACL is fine, but unfortunately this injury will see him miss the next six to eight weeks of footy.”
Meanwhile the Bulldogs revealed Toby McLean would make a return to the VFL this weekend following his recovery from an ACL injury.
Dew gives update on Sun after sickening ankle injury
Gold Coast defender Wil Powell will miss the rest of the AFL season after suffering a horrific ankle injury in the Suns’ 43-point weekend win over the Adelaide Crows.
Play was delayed for several minutes in the third quarter at Metricon Stadium on Sunday after Powell’s right foot was left at an awkward angle after he was tackled by the Crows’ Ned McHenry.
Powell, 22, was eventually taken from the field in a medi-cab and later transported to hospital where he spent the night.
He had surgery on Monday to repair a fractured and dislocated ankle. The injured ankle also suffered ligament damage.
“It was a pretty severe injury,” Suns general manager of football performance Wayne Campbell said.
“He’s tough and he’s much-loved and we’re looking after him as best we can.
“We’ll put him through a rehab process and are really confident in our medical and high performance department to get him back, but he’ll sit out the rest of the year and we’ll get him up and going for pre-season next year.”
Powell wasn’t the only Gold Coast player hurt in the win, with Connor Budarick suffering a hamstring injury.
Budarick was due to have scans on the injury on Monday.
The in-form Suns will aim for a fourth successive win when they meet Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval on Sunday.
Coach Stuart Dew said on Sunday the club would rally around Powell.
He said the Suns took time to recover from Powell’s injury in the third term when the Crows made a run at the home side.
“We’re thinking of him and we’ll check on him as soon as we can.,” he said.
“A couple of guys mentioned they saw it on the scoreboard. When it’s your mate and everyone knows Powelly lives for footy.
“For a little period there emotionally, there was a little bit of an effect and then they were able to settle. It’s only human that when a bad one like that happens, there’s a little period there where they’re on the back foot.’’
Essendon rule out star mid
Essendon has ruled out utility Andy McGrath from Friday night’s clash against West Coast at Perth Stadium with an adductor strain.
McGrath returned to the Bombers’ line-up for the team’s win over St Kilda last Friday night after missing the previous week’s clash against Carlton with the same injury.
Scans on the weekend confirmed a “low-grade” adductor strain after McGrath experienced tightness late in the 35-point win.
Essendon’s general manager of football Josh Mahoney said the Bombers would assess McGrath’s availability for the following week against Sydney.
“He had some adductor tightness and awareness late in the game, in the similar area to what he has recently been experiencing which is why he got scanned on Saturday morning,” Mahoney said.
“He won’t be available for next week’s game against West Coast, but we will closely monitor his recovery before making an assessment on his availability for the week following.”
The Bombes claimed their third win of the season when they snapped a four-game losing streak with their win over the Saints at Marvel Stadium.
Cat collision puts Eagles star in hospital
West Coast vice-captain Jeremy McGovern is recovering in hospital after breaking his ribs in a nasty collision with Geelong forward Jeremy Cameron on Saturday.
Coach Adam Simpson said post-match the Eagles were concerned the defender had sustained the severe injury after he was forced to leave the ground in the hands of trainers following the incident in the second quarter.
The club confirmed in a statement on Sunday morning that McGovern had spent the night in hospital.
“The West Coast Eagles confirms that unfortunately star defender Jeremy McGovern spent last night in Royal Perth Hospital after a damaging second-quarter collision in the game against Geelong left him with broken ribs,” the statement said.
“McGovern is receiving the best care and is in a stable condition. He is unable to receive visitors but is expected to be released from hospital tomorrow.
“The club requests privacy for Jeremy at this time and will make no further statement until more details become available.”
Simpson flagged the severity of the injury after the 12.9 (81) to 9.9 (63) loss.
“He’s had plenty of knocks over his time and he’s pretty brave. He plays hurt all the time. For him not to get up like that, he’s pretty sore,” he said.
McGovern had just returned to the side as one of seven inclusions after recovering from a back injury.
It is the latest blow to the Eagles, who are down on key-position players.
Ruckman Nic Naitanui is listed as still 2-3 away with a knee injury, while pre-season draftee Hugh Dixon is understood to have injured both his calves.
Promising forward Oscar Allen is on the inactive list with a foot injury, while ruckman Luke Strnadica is sidelined with illness.
West Coast was forced to play defender Josh Rotham as a ruck-forward in its WAFL loss to Subiaco because of the lack of talls. Draftee forward Jack Williams also spent time in the ruck.
The Eagles have just a six-day break before they host a confident Essendon at Optus Stadium, with the Bombers shocking St Kilda on Friday night to claim a 15.17 (107) to 11.6 (72) win at Marvel Stadium.
The Eagles loss on Saturday was their ninth on the trot, a new club record, but they looked a lot better than they had in previous weeks.
Before the bye, they lost to Adelaide by 31 points and the seven defeats before that were by an average of 80 points.
They should get better going forward too, with Tim Kelly, Lian Ryan and Sam Petrevski-Seton rules out of the game against the Cats due to illness. All three could return for the game against the Bombers.
Kelly was a late withdrawal from Saturday’s game.
Elliot Yeo, Dom Sheed and Willie Rioli also returned on Saturday after stints on the sidelines, but with some time in the WAFL.
Ashcroft slide once again exposes draft bidding system
One year after clubs spat chips about academy selections, four clubs sat on their hands again. At least Andrew Bassat had a go, writes JOSH BARNES. Plus, the updated draft order for day 2.
Tiger delight as North pays heavy price for final draft night pick
On a night where little caused a surprise, North Melbourne waited until the last moment to pull a stunner, paying a significant price and taking an even more significant risk.