The Hawks look set to soar into September after a 63-point win over Richmond at the MCG,and they’ve been dealt a lucky break after what looked like a serious collarbone injury to Will Day.
Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin said his whole club was frustrated with its performance this season. Meanwhile,the data backs up Sam Mitchell’s hope that his surging Hawks play a brand of footy that will stand up in September,and Carlton will blood at least one debutant this week.
Hours before Melbourne’s clash with Port Adelaide at the MCG on Saturday,the Demons’ biggest midfield star was just happy to be back “walking really fast” again on the Tan.
Carlton have met with a veteran Greater Western Sydney defender,who is out of contract and likely to leave the Giants.
Carlton slumped from fourth to eighth in a bad weekend for the navy blue faithful,but they are still closer to success than Mitch McGovern’s kick was to scoring.
Collingwood star Jordan De Goey’s season is over after scans confirmed he suffered a high-grade hamstring injury in the Magpies’ heart-stopping three-point win against Carlton on Saturday night.
The Melbourne superstar has been cleared to run for the first time since suffering the horrific injuries that ruled him out for the rest of the season.
Carlton will be forced into at least three changes after an important midfielder was ruled out,while the AFL reprimanded a star Giant for a scathing assessment of the league’s crackdown on dangerous tackles.
The fact that the Blues forward has been cleared to play this week,despite such visible signs of a head injury,underscores a shocking inconsistency in the AFL’s concussion guidelines.
Carlton’s tough win over North Melbourne has come at a cost,with a fractured foot to sideline star ruckman Tom De Koning until the end of the home-and-away season. Meanwhile,the Swans are battling their own injury issues.
After a week of controversy and confusion,the AFL has provided examples of dangerous and safe tackles.