Patrick Dangerfield suffers collapsed lung in loss to Port Adelaide

Patrick Dangerfield was labelled a warrior for playing out Thursday’s loss to Adelaide before a trip to hospital revealed a significant injury.

Patrick Dangerfield was taken to hospital after the match in Adelaide. Picture: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Geelong skipper Patrick Dangerfield played out Thursday night’s loss to Port Adelaide with a partially collapsed lung and a cracked rib that could sideline him for some time.

The 33-year-old suffered a heavy blow to his lower back/hip region in a collision with Dan Houston in the second quarter but played out the match before being sent to hospital.

On Friday morning the club confirmed the full extent of the injury, with no clear timeline on a return for the Brownlow medallist who will travel back to his home at Moggs Creek by car after being released from hospital.

“Geelong Captain Patrick Dangerfield has suffered a partially collapsed lung and cracked rib following a marking contest during the second quarter of Thursday’s night match against Port Adelaide,” a club statement said.

“Dangerfield was taken to hospital after the game where he underwent further assessment and scans. He returned to the team hotel on Thursday night and will return to Melbourne on Friday by car.

“The Cats medical team will continue to monitor Dangerfield to determine a return to play timeline.

Health Update 📣 Danger has suffered a partially collapsed lung and cracked rib following a marking contest during the second quarter of Thursday night's match.

— Geelong Cats (@GeelongCats) June 16, 2023

Without knowing the extent of the injury post-game, Geelong Coach Chris Scott called Dangerfield a “warrior“ for playing on while clearly in pain.

“He got that knock and he just progressively seized up more and more to the point where, he‘s a warrior, but it looked to us like he couldn’t move,” Scott said.

“He said that he wanted to keep trying, but it was clear he just couldn‘t have an impact on the game from pretty early in the second quarter.

“Our medical staff are brilliant and they will be providing the best care possible.”

Dangerfield was playing his first game back after a hamstring injury suffered against old side Adelaide at GMHBA Stadium in round 8.

Travis Boak collides with Patrick Dangerfield. Picture: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Tanner Bruhn was also a casualty on a tough night for the Cats, with the young midfielder subbed out of the game after halftime with a shoulder injury.

It continued a worrying trend for the reigning premiers, who slipped to a 6-7 record after conceding seven unanswered goals in the third quarter.

“The pattern has been ‘get a couple back, lose a couple’,” Scott said.

“It’s not an excuse, but there is a really strong correlation around the competition at the moment that teams who have good availability and good cohesion (are winning).

“We were a case in point last year. We were going OK and we found a way to win some games and when we got them all back and they played together week after week we hit our straps.

“We‘re optimistic that can happen again.”

Dangerfield leads his team off Adelaide Oval. Picture: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images

The Cats conceded more than 100 points against Port, the fifth time that‘s happened in 13 games this season. Last year it happened just once.

“I think if you go back and compare us to us at our best there are a whole range of reasons (why) and most of them revolve around a lack of cohesion and personnel we‘ve had,” Scott said.

“Even the guys that we brought back, we didn‘t expect them to be at their best straight away after missing so much footy.

“Even when we have got guys back they go and get injured again.

“That‘s been the pattern a little bit for us.

“If you look at the outcome, we‘re just getting scored against when the ball goes inside our defensive 50, which is traditionally something we’ve been good at.

“But it‘s clearly an area we need to improve.

“Clearly, there are some things that aren‘t working for us at the moment, but we’re going to hang in.”