Sub rule: Nick Vlastuin pushing for Richmond return, John Longmire calls for changes to be made
Nick Vlastuin is the latest player set to return this weekend despite being subbed off with injury – and it’s prompted calls for a change to the new rule.
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Richmond captain Trent Cotchin will be back for the Tigers clash against Hawthorn on Sunday while Nick Vlastuin should be back running by the end of the week after controversially being substituted against Carlton.
The Tigers’ skipper missed the Round 1 win over the Blues at the MCG after coming down with a bout of gastro a day before the season opener.
Richmond physical performance manager Peter Burge said Cotchin was given up until lunchtime before the Carlton clash to try and recover, but he would be fine for the Hawks match on Sunday.
“Trent over the weekend resumed some training and on Sunday did a pretty lengthy conditioning session, so we actually got some work into him on Sunday and he will resume normal training this week and be available for selection,” he said.
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He might be joined by Vlastuin, who came off under the new medical substitute rule with some questions asked about whether it was required for the defender.
Burge said Vlastuin could not finish the game with his knee injury.
“During the game, Nick came off the ground and was in quite a bit of pain with his knee, which we think was a hyperextension incident where he was trying to kick the ball off the ground and did not make contact with the ball,” Burge said.
“He came off the ground and he was in a lot of pain and he could barely walk down the stairs into the race into the doctor’s rooms.”
Burge said the scans the next day showed Vlastuin had some fluid in his knee, and had only started walking again on Tuesday,
“He could not bend his knee at all when he was assessed and we were assessing him for up to 10 minutes, trying tape and various things,” he said.
“He has been pretty sore over the weekend and has only started walking normally today, so we are hopeful that by the end of the week he would be able to be back in some sort of jogging and running and we will be able to assess how he progresses from there.”
Burge also said Bachar Houli was expected to be available for Round 3, with the aim of returning full training this weekend.
“At what level we are a bit unsure at this stage, but we would like to get two full weeks of football training into Bachar given the interruptions we have had,” he said.
“It is looking really good and we can’t wait to see Bachar out there shortly.”
LONGMIRE CALLS ON AFL TO CHANGE SUB RULE
Premiership coach John Longmire says it is not too late for the AFL to tinker with its contentious sub rule to lessen the immense pressure on club doctors.
Longmire told the Herald Sun on Tuesday that senior coaches were legitimately keen to look after the welfare of their players when they pushed hard for its introduction.
But three of the eight players subbed out over the weekend are likely available to play despite doctors having to believe they will miss 12 days when they pull the trigger on a sub.
Longmire said his belief was that the sub rule should be used only as a concussion replacement or as an open-slather tactic available to clubs.
The AFL has lost 11 senior club doctors over the off-season, with doctors already under the pump with rigorous new concussion and reporting procedures.
Asked if it was too late for the league to alter the policy, Longmire replied: “It wasn’t too late to add it in the week before the season”.
“My initial thought was it’s either just for concussion or an open slather sub where you make a decision whenever you want. I would have thought it was one of those. Just concussion, or use it when you like. So the doctors are under less pressure, not more pressure.
“What you don’t want to do is have doctors under more pressure. You are under enough pressure to get everything right as a medical team. There are so many things you are overloaded with in regards to regulations and rules and it’s a big job. The whole idea was to take pressure off rather than add that pressure.”
Longmire says the AFL should make an adjustment that would mean doctors could make sound medical judgments on concussions but not have to deal with degrees of other injuries.
“I don’t know how it will end up. Probably where it will end up is there may be an adjustment
But my initial thought was it’s either one or another. It started off as a welfare issue and there is a real suspicion about the public about the motivations from coaches.
“But it’s genuinely where it started. The game has never been harder to play. Look at the inside-50s at the moment, the game is up and back, up and back.
“The doctors have more pressure on them so the sub was about that priority rather than winning. That should still be the priority. The welfare of players and the decision-making of doctors.”
CATS SEEK EXEMPTION FOR MENEGOLA
The AFL faces a serious test of its contentious medical substitute rule as Geelong midfielder Sam Menegola pushes to play only six days after he was subbed out.
Menegola was taken from the ground with a shoulder problem in the shock loss to Adelaide but the Cats on Monday said scans had confirmed the AC joint injury was not as bad as expected.
It means he could be available for the crunch clash against the Brisbane Lions on Friday night as the Cats desperately try to avoid their first 0-2 start to the season in six years.
In a massive blow, Geelong will already be missing superstar midfielder Patrick Dangerfield who on Tuesday night at the tribunal faces a three-match suspension for his shirt-front on young Crow Jake Kelly.
It is expected Dangerfield will argue he was bracing for contact and protecting himself in the collision which could keep the jet onballer sidelined for clashes against Brisbane, Hawthorn and Melbourne.
The Cats do not want to lose Dangerfield and Menegola with superstar forward Jeremy Cameron facing one at least one month out after a second hamstring setback.
It follows an overhaul of the Cats’ medical department over summer to come under the AFL’s heavily-reduced football department soft cap.
Menegola will attempt to prove his fitness at training this week, while out-of-favour defender Jack Henry is also in line for a recall after he was surprisingly left out of the Cats’ Round 1 team.
Geelong football manager Simon Lloyd said Menegola was in the mix for the Brisbane clash, while star midfielder Mitch Duncan could also make his return from an ankle issue.
“Sam is not as bad as first thought with an x-ray showing an AC joint injury,” Lloyd said.
“Menegola hasn’t been ruled out of Friday night’s game as yet and we will wait to see what the next few days bring.”
But the Cats will have to seek special approval from the AFL for Menegola to play given he was subbed off under the league’s new medical provisions on Saturday.
Richmond is in the same position with gun defender Nick Vlastuin although Richmond has a longer wait to make a call on his leg injury as the Tigers prepare to take on Hawthorn on Sunday.
North confirmed that Aidan Corr was still in doubt for this weekend’s clash with Gold Coast Suns after injuring his toe on Sunday and being subbed off.
Under AFL rules, players can only be subbed out on the reasonable expectation they require at least 12 days to recover from a legitimate injury.
It means the Cats on Monday had to provide a medical certificate detailing the specifics of Menegola’s injury and his recovery.
Menegola was clearly in pain as he was taken from the ground on Saturday and was replaced by Charlie Constable as the Cats went down to last year’s wooden-spooner.
The league’s chief medical officer, Dr Peter Harcourt, can also request more information as the week unfolds to make sure the medical substitute rule had not been exploited.
Any clubs caught out abusing the rule would be hit with heavy sanctions including the loss of premiership points, draft picks and fines, the league has warned.
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