Stay up to date throughout Round 12 with our rolling injury report from the coaches post-game. With the seven-game round extending from Thursday night until Sunday, these snippets of info will be key.
Port Adelaide v Carlton
Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley indicated Connor Rozee should be available following their Round 13 bye, along with Junior Rioli. He said: “He rolled his ankle so he should be. He was very close but he wasn’t close enough. He should play after the bye.”
Carlton coach Michael Voss praised Alex Cincotta for his shutdown role on Zak Butters, while he said he wasn’t expecting anyone back from injury next week.
Voss also hailed Zac Williams who has shifted forward over the past fortnight. He said: “He kept telling me for 12 months he kicks goals. He’s been more than that. He’s been able to go up there, have a real impact and he’s brought some fresh energy to our group. He’s tough, he’s hard, he’s clean over the footy and he’s hard to beat.”
Collingwood v Western Bulldogs
Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge heaped praise on Marcus Bontempelli for his dominant display with 38 disposals and 2 goals. He said: “He was pretty fatigued, but you know, on a night like tonight when we needed everyone to stand up, as the skipper he was enormous.”
Beveridge also hailed the emergence of rookie Ryley Sanders. He said: “A lot of growth from Sando tonight. I thought he did a terrific job.”
The Dogs subbed out James Harmes early with a hamstring injury, while Laitham Vandermeer exited with a hamstring issue too. Beveridge said they’d be sent for scans and added: “We’re hoping they’re on the lower end of severity.”
Beveridge also noted Rory Lobb had a tight back at three-quarter time but played on. On injuries, Beveridge offered updates on Nick Coffield (shoulder) who was “not far away”, along with Ed Richards and Tom Liberatore. He said: “we’re hoping ed and maybe tom might be available after the concussion.”
Beveridge also noted they sent Adam Treloar to mark Nick Daicos in the final term to blunt this influence. He said: “We asked Adam to go to Nick at the stoppages in the last quarter, and Adam’s last quarter was enormous.”
Despite that, Collingwood coach Craig McRae hailed Daicos. He said: “Nick’s playing exceptionally well for us. There’s a lot of things that Nick does, and maybe others don’t see, but his pressure’s been elite for us around the ground, his clearance work has gone to another level.”
McRae said John Noble was subbed out tactically, not due to injury, and said a couple might be returning for their next game on the King’s Birthday, without identifying whom.
Sam Darcy copped a two-game suspension for a late hit on Brayden Maynard, while Rhylee West also was offered a one-game ban.
Hawthorn v Adelaide
Changkuoth Jiath was reported for a headbutt on Mitch Hinge. Hawks coach Sam Mitchell praised ruckman Ned Reeves for his impact with Lloyd Meek out. On Meek, he added: “We’ll see what happens with Meeky as well.”
Adelaide subbed out Taylor Walker with a back issue. Crows coach Matthew Nicks said: “Taylor’s back seized up unfortunately so that’s one we’ll have to have a really good look at. We’ll keep an eye on it. We have a 5-day break now so it’s going to be quite challenging for him to get right.”
Jordan Dawson had a pre-game fitness test after a light week but played. Nicks admitted he was sore ahead of a five-day break and explained: “He had a test. He tested throughout the week. It was a lighter week. He’s pushing through and leading by example. I thought he fought. He’s been challenged this week. His body, he’s had some soreness.”
Midfielder Matt Crouch reportedly picked up a shoulder injury, which is one to watch.
West Coast v St Kilda
West Coast top draft pick Harley Reid was offered a two-game suspension for a dangerous tackle on St Kilda’s Darcy Wilson. The Eagles may yet challenge the ban, to at least get it downgraded, having been graded as careless conduct, high impact and high contact. Wilson played on.
Eagles coach Adam Simpson was hopeful Jake Waterman (shoulder) and Tim Kelly (hip flexor) would return next week. He said: “We’re hoping it’s a one-weeker and he’s back next week. TK is the same.”
St Kilda lost Max King with a “jarred knee” but assistant coach Corey Enright was “hopeful” he’d OK for next week.
Enright clarified there was no concussion concern for Rowan Marshall. He said: “No, he bounced back pretty quick from that. We’ll obviously look at him through the week but he seems fine.”
Geelong v Richmond
Richmond confirmed in a Sunday statement that rookie Mykelti Lefau has suffered an ACL injury, which will end his 2024 season. Richmond subbed out Marlion Pickett with a calf injury.
Geelong subbed out Ollie Henry with a hamstring concern which will need scans. Cats coach Chris Scott said subbing him out with “precautionary”. Scott said “it’ll be tempting to bring Patrick Dangerfield” back and they’d likely hold back Cam Guthrie.
Melbourne v Fremantle
Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir was asked about why Jordan Clark left the game late, questioned if it was a cramp or worse. He said: “I don’t know, I didn’t ask. Maybe a corkie. He’s all good.
Longmuir also praised his ruck combination of Sean Darcy and Luke Jackson in a sign he’s now happy with their split. He said: “I don’t really care what everyone else thinks. If others want to be sensationalist and be the first to say it’s not working, the fact is last year when both played and had continuity, it worked. We haven’t had that continuity this year.
“As much as everyone thinks you can just click your fingers and everything falls into place, it takes a little while for Luke to find his way down forward and be comfortable playing that role again, it doesn’t happen in one week.
“I think we saw today what our three key forwards can do if they have that continuity. I thought they were all dangerous – Sean’s in his second game back and he’s going to get better as well. But I thought he covered the ground really well and was strong in the ruck.”
Lachie Hunter was subbed out with a tight calf and Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin said he’d need scans.
Gold Coast v Essendon
Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick revealed Jarrod Witts missed the game with a hamstring strain but was hopeful it was only minor. He said: “We think it might be a one-weeker at this stage. We’ll get a better indication. It only happened late this week. He had scans and we’ll get that out in due course.”
Essendon coach Brad Scott said Kyle Langford’s hip issue “doesn’t sound too serious” while he noted ruckman Todd Goldstein missed with a minor ankle concern.
Scott was asked about a reported pectoral issue for Zach Reid in the VFL. He said: “I’ve been made aware it might be a pectoral injury but I haven’t spoken to any of our medical staff. Reidy has looked fantastic at training and the VFL and can’t take a trick. He’s just incredibly unlucky. He’s a great person, we think he’s a player of enormous potential, and we’ll persist with him as long as it takes.”
