Gold Coast Suns coach Damien Hardwick has offered an update on Christian Petracca’s timeline on a return to AFL ranks, revealing he’s probably for their Round 6 game against Essendon.
Petracca missed the Suns’ loss to Melbourne in Round 4 after suffering a hamstring injury in Round 2 against Richmond.
Gold Coast originally listed Petracca as out for the “medium term” but that timeline appears to be narrowing.
Hardwick said Petracca was “probably doubtful” for their Round 5 Gather Round game against Sydney but was targeting the Essendon game after.
“He’s probably doubtful, he certainly will be probable for the Essendon game,” he said.
“We want to keep an open mind with what it looks like.”
The Suns coach, however, did reveal they wouldn’t take any risks with their off-season recruit.
“The great thing about Christian, like Matt Rowell and all the great players, is they do everything in their power to do get up and play.
“He’s going to give himself a chance but what we’ve got to remember is it’s a marathon not a sprint.
“It’s a very important game next week and we understand that but he’s an incredibly important player to our long-term future. We need to make sure we make the right call.”
