AFL round 11 injury news: Pies sweating fitness of Pendlebury, Cox, Mihocek as injury list grows

Collingwood is sweating the fitness of some of its stars after its injury list has swelled to 15, while, Western Bulldogs star Aaron Naughton has learned his fate after injuring his knee against Sydney.

PERTH, AUSTRALIA – MAY 24: Scott Pendlebury of the Magpies in action during the round 11 AFL match between Walyalup (the Fremantle Dockers) and Collingwood Magpies at Optus Stadium, on May 24, 2024, in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

Collingwood will count the cost of a bruising draw against Fremantle on Monday as it assesses injuries to Scott Pendlebury, Mason Cox and Brody Mihocek.

The Pies’ injury list has hit 15 ahead of the Friday night clash against the Western Bulldogs as Craig McRae’s side continues to make its fanbase proud.

The AFL ticked off the time wasting free kick against Lochie Sullivan on Saturday that helped the Dockers get back into the game.

Yet while the AFL backed in its umpire Matt Nicholls a host of examples across the weekend were highlighted where players were not penalised for an identical infraction.

In the Hawthorn-Brisbane game James Worpel handed the ball to Will Day at a stoppage, who handed the ball to the umpire without penalty.

Brisbane’s Lachie Neale also handed the ball to teammate Cam Rayner, who dropped the ball to the ground at a boundary throw in, with neither player penalised.

Mihocek returned 21 days after a hamstring issue against Carlton and while he was brilliant early the injury recurred so he is expected to miss at least three weeks.

Cox’s knee was trapped under him as he collided with a Fremantle opponent in the same incident that saw him concussed.

He had been in the wars all night after being collected by a stray Sean Darcy arm that cut open his face and smashed his protective goggles.

The Pies are hopeful he has only bone bruising and might be available against Melbourne on Queens Birthday.

Ever-green Pendlebury has just overcome a painful rib injury that meant he needed a protective vest but he battled with a bicep injury during the tie against the Dockers.

Scott Pendlebury is under an injury cloud. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images.

He needed painkilling tablets for that elbow-bicep injury with the Pies only likely to have an update on his injury on Monday or Tuesday given a return from Perth on Saturday night.

Jordan De Goey (abdominal sprain) travelled with his teammates to Perth and is likely to be available for Queens Birthday but could be a sneaky chance against the Western Bulldogs if he trains well this week.

Jeremy Howe (groin) is also one or two weeks away and would be a forward line saviour given Mihocek and Cox’s absence but is no certainty this week.

Tom Mitchell needs to overcome his plantar fascia condition and then build up his base level fitness after also battling appendicitis so he could be a month from a return to the senior side.

The Pies are still in the dark about Jamie Elliott’s vascular condition so he also could be some time away given his symptoms are yet to resolve.

Aiden Begg is out for the season with a knee injury so the Pies have a mid-season draft pick on Wednesday and have players like ex-Hawk Ned Long and high flyer Jack Hutchison on their VFL list.

But Collingwood are one of many clubs not exactly thrilled with the depth of talent in the draft so with a pick in the early teens might not take a selection.

DOGS HOPE NAUGHTON HAS AVOIDED THE WORST

The Western Bulldogs expect Aaron Naughton to make a swift return to football after a tackle that could have resulted in a knee reconstruction ended up in a moderate medial ligament injury.

The Dogs believe Naughton will miss only 4-6 weeks, so with their round 15 bye he could miss as few as three games under a best-case scenario.

The wrenching, twisting motion as he was tackled by Sydney opponent Lewis Melican looked for all the world like it had resulted in an ACL tear.

It would have been disastrous for a club still not yet into his new eight-year $1.2 million per season deal to 2032.

Just as in the 2019 elimination final when Naughton hobbled off with a possible ACL tear, he was able to dodge a bullet despite continuing management issues with his knees.

The Dogs will likely call upon back-up forward Rory Lobb given they had to throw Marcus Bontempelli forward given coach Luke Beveridge believed the front six had become “dysfunctional” without Naughton.

Aaron Naughton is carried from the field after being injured. Picture: Morgan Hancock/Getty Images

The Dogs said in a statement that the club “will work through a return to play plan in coming days but expects to be without the 24-year-old for at least the next four to six weeks”.

It will give Sam Darcy and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan a chance to lead that forward line alongside Lobb, who is still likely to request a trade at year’s end.

The 5-6 Dogs were valiant in defeat despite an injury toll that also saw Ed Richards and Anthony Scott concussed in head clashes against Sydney.

Richards suffered a round 2 concussion in an incident with Gold Coast’s David Swallow and was also taken to hospital with concussion in 2020 after a collision with Marley Williams.

But the Dogs are hopeful he might only miss one week given he was ruled out with a SCAT 6 test but recovered well post-match.

Ed Richards collides with Oliver Florent. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Scott has also had concussion issues including a span late in 2022 where he missed six weeks as well as a fractured skull and a separate concussion across that period.

The Dogs are hopeful Tom Liberatore will be ready to take on Brisbane in round 13 in a Friday night clash if his return to contact training goes to plan.

"We're pretty optimistic it's not his ACL."

Western Bulldogs GM of Football Operations Matthew Egan provides an update on Aaron Naughton.#AFLDogsSwanspic.twitter.com/zAbP3IoHsb

— 7AFL (@7AFL) May 23, 2024

He had further scans with neurologists after his collapse in the Hawthorn game which again showed no damage.

So while the Dogs are aware it does not prevent another concussion, their medicos and independent experts have gone over and above to safeguard his health.

James O’Donnell will be ready to resume from a virus against Collingwood, while Ryley Sanders will likely hold his spot in the side.

Ex-Pies wingman Caleb Poulter was excellent in the VFL last week and has another chance to push his selection claims against his old club in a Footscray clash on Saturday.

Originally published as AFL round 11 injury news: Pies sweating fitness of Pendlebury, Cox, Mihocek as injury list grows