Injury watch: Who is fit and who is in trouble ahead of the AFL’s return on June 11
Hawthorn star Jaeger O’Meara has revealed the culprit who left him with what turned out to be a small fracture. But he says the incident wasn't his teammate's fault. Check out the latest injury news.
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The countdown to Round 1 is getting closer and in a shortened season, having a clean bill of health has never been more important.
Scroll down for the latest on Jaeger O’Meara, Ben Reid, Sam Sturt, Adam Treloar and more.
Hawks star reveals who gave him skull fracture
Michael Randall
Hawthorn star Jaeger O’Meara has revealed the culprit that left him with a “squishy” spot in his skull above his eyebrow that turned out to be a fracture.
The silky ball user said young midfielder Harrison Jones landed on him in a drill, “with all his weight going through his elbow”.
“It wasn’t his fault … I actually tackled him, so it’s probably my fault for tackling him poorly,” O’Meara said on Fox Footy’s AFL Live.
Incredibly, after the incident, O’Meara trained on, not realising the severity of his injury.
“I didn’t really think too much of it, kept training for about another half an hour and then I touched my head and it was real squishy,” he said.
“I showed one of the coaches and he said ‘mate, you better run off and get checked out by the doctor’.
“So quickly went and got a scan and came off with a small little fracture, but I feel completely fine.”
O’Meara believes he is still a chance to play in Round 2, given the long break due to the COVID-19 shutdown.
“I had a couple of days of headaches but not a concussion and I feel completely fine,” he said.
“(It’s a) bit frustrating but hopefully I can talk the doctors around to letting me play next week.”
The Hawks face Geelong in a Friday night blockbuster at GMHBA Stadium next week.
But Clarkson joked he would love to see O’Meara wear the same helmet as club legend Jason Dunstall did on returning from a fractured skull in 1990.
Photos of Dunstall wearing the “crash hat” have continually surfaced in his media work during the last 20 years.
“It’s an incident that’s probably happened so many times and most of the time you actually split a bit of skin, rather than have a little fracture,” Clarkson told reporters of O’Meara’s injury.
“If you saw him and watched him train, you’d think there was nothing wrong. “The challenge will probably be holding him back a bit because he’s raring to go.
“I’m thinking of ringing the ‘Chief’ and seeing if we could borrow (the helmet) ... the size of their melons might be a little bit different though.”
IRISHMAN RETURNS TO ESSENDON TRAINING
- Glenn McFarlane
Conor McKenna returns to Essendon training on Monday as he prepares for a race against time to prove his fitness ahead of the Round 2 clash with Sydney on June 14.
McKenna, 24, has just finished 14 days in quarantine after returning from Ireland earlier this month.
But it is understood the highly-talented, speedy Irishman — who finished fourth in the club’s best and fairest last year — has worked hard on his fitness during the coronavirus shutdown.
He missed the Bombers’ Round 1 win over Fremantle then headed home to Ireland when the AFL season was sensationally shutdown in late March.
The homesick Irishman is contracted until the end of the 2021 season, but the Bombers are doing everything in their power to try and keep him.
PIES QUASH REID HAMSTRING RUMOURS
- Lauren Wood
Luckless Pie Ben Reid has been dealt a punishing blow with a “significant” calf injury, bringing his immediate playing future to a grinding halt.
Reid, 31, had only this week had his training program wound back by club medicos in an effort for caution given the swingman’s lengthy soft-tissue injury history.
But, while jogging at a training session at the Holden Centre on Friday morning, Reid “felt his calf go” and he will now miss at least the first few weeks of the season.
“We had been easing him back as a precaution due to the intense, short block of training the players have before Round 2,” Collingwood football boss Geoff Walsh said.
“We’ll know more about the severity of the injury in coming days but at this stage it looks like it is significant.
“Certainly, with a restart to the season on the doorstep, he is going to miss some matches.”
Reid, who suffered an ankle injury during the pre-season and did not play in Round 1, has played just 14 games over the last two seasons after a string of soft tissue complaints including his calf and hamstring.
He travelled to Germany in 2015 to consult with leading doctor Hans Muller-Wohlfahrt in an effort to unlock and prevent his ongoing issues.
Reid is contracted until the end of this season after signing a one-year extension at the end of last year.
While Reid was on light duties at training on Friday, Collingwood stepped its preparations for its June 11 clash with Richmond up a notch, with four 20-minute quarters at the Holden Centre.
Forward Brody Mihocek — who had battled foot soreness — trained fully and said he would be ready to play in 12 days’ time.
“I think that’s (the pain) gone,” he said.
“It takes a while to warm up, but once it gets going, it’s no problem at all.”
DOCKERS RISING STAR IN DOUBT FOR ROUND 2
Fremantle’s Round 1 Rising Star nominee is in doubt for the Dockers’ Round 2 clash against Brisbane.
Sturt suffered a lower back injury during the AFL shutdown and the injury flared after he returned to training this week.
The 20-year-old wasn’t part of the Dockers’ first contact session on Monday and isn’t expected to return to full training until next week.
“He’s had a little bit of a setback with a little bit of a back injury,” coach Justin Longmuir told reporters on Wednesday afternoon.
“It’s not bad but it will set him back a couple of sessions.
“It makes it tougher (for Round 2). I’ve got him in the side at the moment, his Round 1 performance was really encouraging.
“He’s done a lot of work over the break and he’s just had a little bit of a flare up of an injury so we expect it to settle down really quickly and he’ll still have two weeks leading into Round 2, so we haven’t made any calls yet.”
Sturt is one of the most popular trade targets in KFC SuperCoach after his four-goal performance against Essendon in Round 1.
In better news for Fremantle, Blake Acres (hamstring), Nathan Wilson (turf toe) and David Mundy (leg) are all set to return.
BUCKS PROVIDES UPDATE ON INJURED PIES
Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley is “anticipating” star midfielder Adam Treloar to miss their blockbuster restart clash against Richmond.
After missing Round 1 with a hamstring issue, Treloar suffered a low grade strain in his calf during their first session back last Monday.
Buckley confirmed the ball-magnet is expected to be sidelined for the first game back since the coronavirus shutdown, but said he was already “bouncing around the joint.”
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Buckley said the injury was minor but Treloar still has work to do in his bid to return to the Pies line-up.
“We wouldn’t be anticipating that (he) will be right to play for Round 2 … I don’t think that’s any real surprise,” Buckley said.
“He will still have to do a bit of work to prove he is in that mix,” Buckley said.
“It’s a really low grade strain, and he’s already bouncing around the joint and looking forward to finding his way back towards full fitness.
The Pies are in a good place with 40 players expected to be in action for their next full training session on Friday, headlined by returning duo Lynden Dunn (ACL) and Travis Varcoe (shoulder).
Two of the four sitting out are Irish players Anton Tohill and Mark Keane, observing their 14-day quarantine until June 6 after flying back from Ireland.
Uncertainty still surrounds Tom Langdon’s knee but Buckley remarked he had one of his “better sessions” this week since returning to the club.
Jaidyn Stephenson is one who is pushing hard to play against the Tigers after his summer was interrupted by glandular fever and a hand injury.
He was named an emergency for the Pies’ Round 1 win over the Bulldogs.
“I had a six-week break to catch up with everyone and get my fitness back after an
interrupted pre-season, but I’m putting my best foot forward,” Stephenson said.
“The whole team has come back in pretty good knick. Everyone has put in the work over the little break we had.
“It’s a really good sign for the team and I wouldn’t want to be ‘Bucks’ to pick the team, because there’s 30 to 35 players that could play Round 2.”
- Dan Batten
TIGERS WON’T TAKE RISKS WITH SORE STAR
Richmond won’t rush Bachar Houli’s recovery from calf issues for its blockbuster Round 2 clash against Collingwood.
Houli trained away from Richmond’s main group on Monday and forward Jack Riewoldt said he was uncertain whether the 32-year-old defender would feature on June 11.
“Bachar’s had a couple of small calf issues. This one’s nothing major, but it’s just precautionary with him,” Riewoldt told reporters.
AFL INJURY LIST: WHO’S HURT AT YOUR CLUB
“Obviously, when you start developing a bit of a history with calves, you (have to) be really diligent and want to be careful with it … and look I’m not sure whether he will put his hand up to play in two weeks’ time.
“He’s assured me personally that it’s not as bad as what was first reported but we’ll take no risk with Bachar as we do with no player.
“If they’re not right to play or if there’s an element of risk that outweighs the reward then we will go down the path of another week off or another two weeks off and when he’s right to go, he’ll be back and flying.
“We know how important (Houli) is and how much of a big game player he is as well, so no risks with Bachar — he’s too important.”
After Richmond’s return to full-contact training, Riewoldt was confident the Tigers had nailed the balance between preparing for matches and minimising injuries.
“We need to do some sort of contact, but we obviously don’t want to be smashing each other,” he said.
“We know (because) the season is shorter and backing up’s going to be really important, that we can’t go out there and smash blokes into the ground — because this year’s the year that everyone needs that full list and we’ll need it big time.
“So for us, it’s just about getting that balance right. We trusted our coaches and our physical staff have really set us up for the restart of the season.”
Riewoldt said defender Nick Vlastuin was primed for the meeting with the Magpies, having recovered from a concussion suffered in Round 1.
MITCHELL’S WARNING ON SLOW START
Even after an extra two months off, champion Hawthorn midfielder Tom Mitchell concedes it will be some time before he returns to his absolute best.
The prolific onballer’s only AFL game since winning the 2018 Brownlow Medal was the Hawks’ Round 1 clash against Brisbane in March at the MCG. Mitchell gathered 25 possessions in an impressive return during Hawthorn’s 28-point victory over last year’s semi-finalists.
It was a welcome relief to get back out on the field after he spent all of last year recovering from a horrific broken left leg suffered in a freak training accident.
The 26-year-old said on Wednesday the COVID-19 enforced AFL shutdown had allowed him to build further strength in his body from the comfort of his home gym.
“The last couple of months have allowed me a little bit more time to condition it,” he said.
“I’m only going to have played one game in over 20 months by the time Round 2 comes back.
“I don’t expect to be back to my best straight away but I’ve got confidence that I’ll get back to my best, hopefully soon, but it might take a few games with that sort of record.”
Mitchell said Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson was more excited than most upon discovering AFL games would restart on June 11.
“He had some dumbbells and he was doing bicep curls on the other end of the Zoom (video call) as if he was preparing to play and get his fitness better,” he said.
“It got a good laugh out of the boys.”
LOCKDOWN WORKS IN ZIEBELL’S FAVOUR
North Melbourne skipper Jack Ziebell is in better shape coming out of the AFL shutdown than he was for Round 1, according to coach Rhyce Shaw.
The captain suffered a medial ligament strain in the Kangaroos’ opening round win over St Kilda but is set to be available for Round 2.
“He’s had the chance to rehab his knee and he’s been running for a good four or five weeks now, which is a bit longer than he had going into Round 1,” Shaw said.
“He trained fully yesterday and the way he moved yesterday, I was really pleased.”
The rookie coach said his players were itching to get back into contact work when permitted from next Monday, although he was wary of doing too much, too soon.
“The boys are ready to get into that real quick but we have to be smart about it with a slow build-up.
“We’ll start off a bit slow but it’s going to be hard to keep them back.”
GIANTS STAR ON TRACK FOR ROUND 2 COMEBACK
GWS coach Leon Cameron is leaning toward pitching former co-captain Callan Ward straight back into the side once the AFL competition resumes.
Ward suffered an anterior cruciate ligament knee injury in Round 4 of 2019 in his only senior game last year.
Cameron said Ward would have been on track to return to play in June had the season not been suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“He’s 30 years old and we trust in our ex-captain to come out and play a really good brand of footy from the start,” Cameron said.
“He’s going to be smashing the door down, there’s no doubt he wants contact next week to show off what he is capable of. But if we don’t think he’s ready and we need to give him another week then we will do that, but right now there is probably no reason why to hold him back.”
Cameron said the Giants reigning best and fairest Tim Taranto was 8-9 weeks away from playing after he required a shoulder reconstruction.
WHEN WILL WE SEE JOE DANIHER IN 2020?
Joe Daniher remains “a fair way off” playing, with coach John Worsfold unable to answer whether the key forward will feature in 2020.
Monday marked exactly 12 months since Daniher took the field for Essendon as the 26-year-old continues to battle a groin issue that Worsfold admits is unprecedented for the Bombers’ medical team.
But any return remains unclear, Worsfold said.
“When I look at what Joe’s doing at the moment, it’s not enough to say that he’ll be ready for Round 2,” he said on Tuesday.
“We’ll just keep progressing him, and we’re not too concerned about saying ‘get him back as quickly as possible’. We’re just following a protocol.
“This is about long-term for Joe to help him absolutely get over this, so his career progresses at the rate we want rather than trying to get him back one or two weeks earlier.”
Skipper Dyson Heppell is also in doubt to play in Round 2.
Worsfold said that Daniher is “a fair way off … the intensity to be ready to play”.
“We’ll just keep progressing him up, and that will take care of itself,” he said
“The next step for him will be getting to the point where he can join in training with the group, and then there’s usually a couple of weeks required where he’s full training with the group before we would say someone’s back ready to play.”
When asked whether Daniher would play in 2020, Worsfold admitted that “I can’t answer that question”, with the best case scenario to “get him back as soon as possible”.
But even a best-case scenario date is “too hard to do”.
“All I can say is it’s our aim, is to help him get back ready to play and ready to resume his career,” he said.
“That’s what we’re aiming for. He’s progressing well, and we’re trying to get him up and ready to go.
“The best case scenario at the moment is that he keeps progressing through this and gets rid of any soreness and has a body that’s ready to step up and play AFL footy.”
Heppell continues his recovery from a foot injury but remains a “lineball” prospect of playing when the season resumes from June 11.
“Really, it’s going to depend on how much he can do in the next three weeks, and what we as a coaching group think is best preparing him not only for Round 2, but to play out this season really strongly,” Worsfold said.
“It’s going to be lineball, I would guess, but the good part is that we’re talking that way and that he’s prepping to play now, and it’s just a matter of whether it’s in a couple of weeks or whether it stretches out by an extra week or so.”
— with AAP
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