AFLW 2024: Amy McDonald to miss 3-5 weeks with hamstring injury, Geelong welcome Fremantle to GMHBA Stadium

Geelong midfielder Amy McDonald’s strong start to the 2024 AFLW season has been halted with a hamstring injury while another Cat will miss multiple games due to the condensed fixture.

Geelong midfielder Amy McDonald has been sidelined with a hamstring injury. Picture: Kelly Defina/Getty Images

Geelong’s finals hopes have received a blow with star midfielder Amy McDonald sidelined for up to a month with a hamstring injury.

Ahead of a round 6 home match against Fremantle on Tuesday, the Cats confirmed McDonald would miss between 3-5 weeks with the right hamstring injury she sustained in Thursday night’s 18-point loss to Hawthorn.

Geelong assistant football boss Brett Johnson said the Cats hoped to regain McDonald in the latter stages of the home-and-away season, but if McDonald’s time on the sidelines extends to the five weeks, it would put her in danger of missing the rest of the 10-week season, with a Cats finals berth then the only way back.

Meanwhile, Geelong small forward Kate Surman will miss both games this week with concussion, with the Cats set to play two games in six days.

Surman entered concussion protocols after a knock from Hawks defender Tamara Smith, who successfully overturned a three-week ban for the incident at tribunal.

“Kate is working through concussion protocols and with the condensed fixture she will miss our next two games,” Johnson said.

“The club will continue to monitor her over the next period and determine her return to play in due course.”

Geelong’s Shelley Scott has been in strong form with five goals in two weeks. Picture: Kelly Defina/Getty Images

Surman has been part of a forward line which has started to gel well in recent games, with the Cats averaging 78.5 points in their past two fixtures.

Cats forward Shelley Scott, who is expecting a tough fight with the 4-1 Dockers on Tuesday, said it would be up to coaches to tweak the forward line in Surman’s absence but backed her teammates ability to play secondary roles to cover those absences.

“We’ll absolutely miss her but we’ll have confidence with whoever we bring in and how we tweak that forward line,” Scott said.

“Hopefully she has a speedy recovery and we get her back because, she’s an important part of the team too.”

Scott, who has kicked five goals in two weeks, believed synergy was starting to form in the Cats forward line, after some small adjustments were made at the start of the season in Chloe Scheer’s absence, with the key forward’s return date from a toe injury still to be confirmed by the Cats.

“For the most part, it’s not new, its just getting better at what we do week in, week out,” Scott said.

Kate Kenny (right) has been an exciting addition to Geelong’s forward line. Picture: Matt Roberts/Getty Images

“Especially after the start we had, we probably weren’t getting the ball forward where and when we wanted it too.

“It’s something that’s building with the group naturally and getting the ball down there more... I think we look dangerous when the ball goes down there, it’s just about us converting and making the most of the opportunity.

“It’s a fun forward line to be in, it’s a great group of girls, so really looking forward to what we can do in the next few weeks.”

Two players who have injected energy into the Cats forward line have been Irish stars Aishling Moloney and Kate Kenny, with the latter in her first season at Kardinia Park.

“She (Moloney) can kick it from anywhere and I think what you’ll see in time, Kate Kenny is very similar — her goal from 60m out (against Gold Coast), for her it’s still understanding the game and working out where she needs to be and what she brings to the team but we can see really positive signs from those guys,” Scott said.

Originally published as AFLW 2024: Amy McDonald to miss 3-5 weeks with hamstring injury, Geelong welcome Fremantle to GMHBA Stadium