By Jon Pierik and Marnie Vinall
St Kilda star Bradley Hill will miss Sunday’s clash against Hawthorn because of a bruised lung.
Hill was taken to hospital for scans after a brutal bump from North Melbourne defender Aidan Corr in the Saints’ eight-point win over North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium on Sunday.
Heavy crunch: Bradley Hill is collected by Aidan Corr in Sunday’s match at Marvel Stadium.Credit: Getty Images
The bump came a split second after Hill tapped the ball forward while running after it on the wing.
Saints football boss Dave Misson said Hill will miss the crucial clash against the Hawks.
“While he’s avoided serious damage, Bradley will miss this week and further tests will determine his return-to-play timeline,” Misson said.
“Bradley’s health is our primary concern and as such we’ll take no undue risks when it comes to him returning to the field.”
The Saints hope Tim Membrey (knee), Jack Hayes (hamstring) and Zaine Cordy (concussion) are available for selection.
Meanwhile, Fremantle stars Nat Fyfe and Sean Darcy will not play again this season.
The Dockers said on Monday that Darcy, who has been sidelined with an ankle injury since round 18, will require surgery and will miss the rest of the campaign.
Fyfe has a stress fracture in his foot, and will now have surgery on a finger injury.
“Nat’s foot recovery has been a little bit slower than first expected so we’ve taken the option of ruling him out for the rest of the season,” Dockers’ high performance boss Phil Merriman said.
“Nat will also go in and have a little bit of work done on one of his fingers, which was always the plan towards the end of the year.
“Sean’s gone through the specialist process, and we’ve made the decision to take Sean out and put him into surgery, so he’ll be out for the rest of the season.” – Jon Pierik
Jordan Ridley to spend several weeks on sidelines with quad injury.Credit: Getty Images
Dons lose Ridley for a month
Essendon defender Jordan Ridley will spend several weeks on the sidelines after scans on Monday revealed a high-grade quad strain, which will keep him out until at least the final home-and-away game of the season.
The 2020 Crichton Medal winner picked up the injury in the final quarter of the Bombers 41-point loss to the Western Bulldogs on Friday night after an impressive performance against Bulldogs forward Aaron Naughton.
Essendon general manager of performance Daniel McPherson said the club remain hopeful Ridley will play a role in the end of the season.
“The scan results have revealed Jordan suffered a high-grade quad strain in a kicking action on Friday night and will be sidelined for the next few weeks. It’s disappointing for ‘Rids’, who has been one of our most consistent players this season,” McPherson said.
“We’ll get a more accurate sense of his potential return to play timeline in the next week or so, but at this early stage we believe he is unlikely to play before the last round of the home and away season.”
The next few weeks are crucial to the 9-9 Bombers’ finals hopes after they dropped out of the eight following the loss to the Bulldogs.
They next play Sydney, West Coast, North Melbourne and GWS before their final-round blockbuster against Collingwood.
Essendon coach Brad Scott conceded post-match on Friday there were players carrying niggles that might need to be rested.
“We’ll have to think through that, as to whether the niggles players carry at different stages impact their performance to the point where maybe you have to have a think about having a week off to get it right,” he said. “An eight-day break helps.” – Marnie Vinall
‘We believe in our identity’: A mid-season pledge transformed the Blues
Carlton’s Sam Docherty says a mid-season pledge has transformed the Blues, as they prepare to face the competition’s benchmark side in a Friday night blockbuster.
The Blues have won five straight to vault to ninth on the ladder, but have injury and selection issues to address ahead of their clash against surging Collingwood at the MCG.
The club confirmed on Monday night that star midfielder Sam Walsh will miss up to three weeks because of a low-grade hamstring strain. The Blues have St Kilda and Melbourne after the Magpies.
Sam Docherty says the Blues are a rejuvenated unit since the mid-season break, as they now prepare to face Collingwood for the Peter MacCallum Cup on Friday night. Credit: Getty Images.
Forward Jack Silvagni will miss at least the Magpies’ clash because of a knee joint sprain. The Blues said Silvagni’s “timeline will become clearer over coming weeks as he works through his rehab”. Silvagni’s absence means the Blues are without two of their three best marking forwards, for Harry McKay (knee) is already out and won’t be back until late in the season.
Captain Patrick Cripps (corked thigh) and slick midfielder Adam Cerra (hamstring) are among six players, including Jack Martin (calf) and Jesse Motlop (calf), who will have to pass fitness tests.
The Magpies prevailed by 28 points when the two clubs met in round 10, Brody Mihocek booting four goals, but former co-captain Docherty insists the Blues, who have won their past five games by at least 50 points, are now a far more cohesive unit.
“I think you saw on the weekend, we are a system-based team,” Docherty said of the 71-point win over bottom-placed West Coast.
“We committed to something about six weeks ago that was pretty significant for the group, and our belief is, it doesn’t matter who is playing for us, if we bring the right intent, the right system, we will be OK.
“We, obviously, lost a few [players] on the weekend, but will get a few back. It’s an exciting moment – we get to stack it [performance] up, in some good form, playing the way we want to play, against a really good side.”
That mid-season pledge, as Jacob Weitering discussed recently, ensured a greater focus on pressure acts, including tackling. The Blues have also been more direct when attacking, more often than not eschewing the sideways kicks of earlier in the season, and this has allowed them to become the No.1 side in scores from defensive 50 since round 13.
They have also dominated scores from stoppage differential since round 14 (+41.4). The Swans are next best (+15.5).
“We are focused on our contest and our pressure, and everything else probably takes care of itself after that,” Docherty said.
“It [direct style] is probably a byproduct of where we are winning the ball back, and the looks we are getting inside 50, that probably looks a bit more direct, but it’s definitely on the defensive end that we are chasing.
“It’s been a pleasing result over the last six weeks to get back to what we believe our identity is.”
On a night the two clubs have their traditional fundraiser for the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, that identity will be challenged. The Magpies are the premiership favourites, having won 13 of their past 14 games, including storming home from a 17-point deficit at the final change to edge Port Adelaide in a top-of-the-table clash on Saturday night.
The Blues will also face individual tests. Forward Charlie Curnow is likely to have superstar defender Darcy Moore as his opponent. Curnow has booted 19 of his competition-high 61 goals against the listless Eagles this season, with 41 against the bottom-10 teams. He had three against the Magpies in round 10.
“They are the benchmark, to be honest. It’s pretty obvious they have had a super year so far and are playing some unbelievable footy,” Docherty said.
“We think when we played them at the start of the year we weren’t in our best form. We need to really focus in on what’s important to us and what makes us a good footy team. We are excited to be able to go out and test that against the best this weekend.” – Jon Pierik
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