Majak Daw on track for AFL return

Majak Daw remains in the mix to make an extraordinary AFL comeback this season.

Majak Daw at North Melbourne training at Arden Street. Picture: Mark Stewart

Majak Daw remains in the mix to make an extraordinary AFL comeback this season, with North Melbourne coach Rhyce Shaw saying the club will be closely monitoring the Kangaroo’s first full game in the VFL on the weekend.

Daw has been building up game time across the past three weeks only eight months after suffering serious hip and pelvic injuries.

He will play a full game in Saturday’s VFL clash with the Northern Blues, with Shaw delighted by the progress the 28-year-old has made.

Asked if the Kangaroos player could return for his 51st AFL game this year, Shaw said: “You wouldn’t put it past him the way he is playing at the moment.”

“There is no pressure on him from our point of view, but if he puts his hand up, I would certainly think about it.”

Shaw said the club’s “sole focus” throughout Daw’s recovery had been on his health and wellbeing, and that would continue to be the case. “We put no pressure on him … (the message has been to) go out there, playing your game, and try to take ‘mark of the year’, but that’s just the way ‘Maj’ goes about it. We assess him every week and will continue to do so.”

North Melbourne have ruled out defender Scott Thompson for Saturday’s clash with West Coast in Perth, with Shaw saying he looked like he had been “riding bareback”.

Thompson, 33, had surgery earlier in the week after he ruptured one of his testicles during last Saturday’s clash with Brisbane at the Gabba.

As the Kangaroos trained at Arden Street, Thompson walked away gingerly to his car, with his coach saying he hoped he would miss only one week.

“He won’t get up this week,” Shaw said. “He has actually looked like he has been riding bareback for the last four weeks the way he walked into the club today.

“We have ruled him out, just to be safe.

“I had a thought overnight that it was kind of pushing the friendship a little bit to try and get him up. He was more relieved than anyone he didn’t have to train.”

Thompson suffered the injury during the third quarter of the Kangaroos’ loss to Brisbane last Saturday night, but played on through “excruciating pain”.

Shaw praised Thompson for enduring the pain, saying: “The doc’s saying on the bench that he was in a world of hurt … (but he said) ‘get me back out there’.

“He reckons there was no pain when he was out there. When he stopped he was in excruciating pain.

“For him to get through was an amazing effort, it really helped us stay in the game.”

Shaw is confident Thompson will only miss one match and would return for the club’s round 20 clash with Hawthorn at Marvel Stadium on Friday week.

Herald Sun