North Melbourne stars battling to get to Round 1 fit as Jack Ziebell and Jared Polec recover from injury
North Melbourne hopes key defender Robbie Tarrant will play in the pre-season comp after foot surgery, but two of the club’s most important players are fighting their own fitness battles.
Nrth Melb
Don't miss out on the headlines from Nrth Melb. Followed categories will be added to My News.
North Melbourne captain Jack Ziebell is in increasing doubt for Round 1 after barely training with the Kangaroos’ main group since Christmas.
A series of niggling calf complaints have put Ziebell in a race to play against St Kilda on Sunday, March 22.
After the latest soft-tissue damage to his calf Roos medicos backed him off again for three weeks, with Ziebell only just starting to run again.
Ziebell battled similar issues last summer but managed to play all 22 games in 2019, filling a critical midfield role for stand-in coach Rhyce Shaw, who eventually won the job full-time.
This time there is genuine doubt given the club’s medicos do not want to push him without a solid training base and risk another injury.
Wingman Jared Polec is also being managed with a foot injury and is no certainty for Round 1 despite having played the last 54 games straight.
Polec finished seventh in the best-and-fairest last year but is one of the club’s best kicks inside 50 and ball-carriers.
Having had foot issues before, he picked up the soreness early and doesn’t need surgery but will also need to show he is fit enough for Round 1.
Watch every match of the Marsh Community Series AFL pre-season comp LIVE & On-Demand on KAYO. New to Kayo? Get your 14-day free trial & start streaming instantly >
In 2015 Polec played only five games due to a navicular injury that some doctors had suggested might see his foot fused, ending his AFL career.
The Roos do not believe the injury is connected to those issues but have given him time to ease the pain before ramping up his training again.
The Roos play an Arden St intra-club on Friday ahead of their opening Marsh Community Series clash against the Western Bulldogs next week.
Veteran defender Robbie Tarrant will start running again next week after a procedure to address a painful foot injury that was hampering his summer. Tarrant had been suffering from Morton’s neuroma, a painful condition in the ball of the foot.
MORE AFL NEWS:
Peter de Rauch: Shinboner spirit is back at North Melbourne
AFL back-pedals on potential AFLM name change, floated by football boss Steve Hocking
But the Roos, who have lost defender Scott Thompson to retirement, are confident Tarrant will play in the Marsh Community series, with North Melbourne also squeezing in another practice game against Melbourne before their final Marsh game against Sydney in Hobart on March 9.
Majak Daw will also see plenty of pre-season action, with coach Shaw backing him after a strong pre-season.
The Roos have been impressed by exciting small forward Jack Mahony in match simulation and believe he could play in Round 1 if he continues his form.
A smart forward who finds space and uses the ball well, he is one of several players who will be desperate to fire in the four games ahead.