2018 PSD 23. Harry Mckay 66. Ciaran Bynre (Delisted 2019) 68. Lewis Melican (Delisted 2019) 70. Alex Pearce
Petracca primed for big year Melbourne young gun Christian Petracca has hit career-best fitness levels as he eyes further time in the midfield in 2018. The former no. 2 draft pick has shaved 10 seconds off his personal best time trial and has spent the pre-season training with the midfield group, working on his endurance and stoppage work. The 22-year-old will remain in the forward line for large chunks of games, but is confident his newfound fitness will allow him to spend stages in the engine room. “I have improved my running a lot,” Petracca told AFL.com.au. “That was my biggest focus throughout the off-season and pre-season “I’m always going to have that as something I need to improve on and so far I have knocked a lot off my time, and I’m looking for more.” After struggling to maintain his teammates pace in running drills early in his career, Petracca is experiencing no such issues in 2018,emerging as a real leader. “I could always compete in games and sessions but it’s more about getting from contest to contest at a good pace and not getting there and being stuffed,” Petracca said. “Now I’m getting there and being quite fresh and feeling good.” Petracca averaged 18.8 disposals and kicked 26 goals in 2017, and is entering his fourth year in the AFL.
Issac Heeney Injury THE Sydney Swans have suffered a blow on the eve of Christmas with young midfielder Isaac Heeney forced to undergo knee surgery. Heeney, 21, experienced pain during the club’s pre-season and an arthroscopy discovered cartilage damage. He is now recovering but won’t rejoin Swans training until the new year, with a likely return to full duties in late January. The emerging midfielder has already played 58 matches across his first three seasons at the Swans after joining the club from its academy.
Knee surgery setback for Grant Birchall Experienced Hawthorn defender Grant Birchall hopes to be back running by the end of January after being forced to have further surgery on his troublesome knee before Christmas. Injury restricted Birchall to just five games in 2017 and he needed to have a PCL reconstruction before the end of the season. He was expected to be in good shape heading into the season but the latest arthroscope on his knee is a minor setback in his recovery. The 29-year-old told the Hawthorn website he hoped to be back sooner rather than later to help the Hawks return to finals. "(There was) a bit of crappy stuff and a bit of swelling in the front of my knee, so I went and cleaned that up and I'm feeling pretty good at the moment," Birchall said. "It will probably be a couple of weeks out, but I'm glad that it's done now – it needed to be done – so I'm on a modified program, and hopefully all being well I will be able to run towards the end of the month."
Jack Viney Isn't Sure When He'll Return To Training 'That's pretty much where I'm at.' Melbourne co-captain Jack Viney could be some distance off returning from a foot injury. Viney played through foot issues in the back half of 2017, with an operation on his plantar fascia after round 15 and a stress fracture soon after that keeping him to just 18 games. The stress fracture has kept him from Melbourne's pre-season, admitting he won't be right for their pre-season camp later this month. "Hopefully around the Maroochydore camp I'll be doing some solid running," Viney told melbournefc.com.au. "I'm probably not into the main group by then but if I can get a really solid block of conditioning in during that time then hopefully I'm back into some contact and doing some drills with the team around early February." Viney hopes to be back at full training in February, but admits there is an unknown about when he will be back.
Greene's Return Imminent Toby Greene was all smiles at GIANTS training this week. There's no doubt it's progressing, but if I had to be totally honest, it's a little bit slower than we'd like. GIANTS star Toby Greene is yet to resume full training but the club insists the forward is on track to take part in the JLT Community Series in March. Greene broke a toe while holidaying in New York in the off-season, which ruled him out of the International Rules Series and left him in a moon boot until mid-December. After winning the best and fairest and All Australian selection in a breakout 2016 season, the 24-year-old backed up with a career-high 45 goals last year despite missing six games due to suspensions and injury. The GIANTS had expected Greene to be back training with the main group after the Christmas break but his rehabilitation hasn't progressed as fast as expected. GIANTS coach Leon Cameron told AFL.com.au he was disappointed his star goalkicker was yet to return but he was not worried about his early-season prospects. "There's no doubt it's progressing, but if I had to be totally honest, it's a little bit slower than we'd like," he said. "He's running, but its only once or twice a week. "It's not going to hinder his start to the season, but you want to get as much pre-season training into the guys so they can set themselves up for that next six months of footy. "There's no way we're going to rush him back – we know the importance of Toby to our team. "He'll probably hit the track later on in January in terms of full-on footy and hopefully we don't have any setbacks with that."
Hip niggle slows key Eagle mid's pre-season Luke Shuey chats with assistant coach Sam Mitchell at Eagles training on Tuesday WEST Coast's most dynamic midfielder, Luke Shuey, is expected to ramp up his JLT Community Series preparations next week after battling a sore hip flexor recently. Shuey was once again held out of contact work as his teammates got stuck into intense match simulation and AFLX practice on Wednesday. When he wasn’t watching the action from the sidelines, the 2016 club champion was restricted to running laps and some repeat-effort skills work. Mystery has surrounded Shuey's presence in the rehab group but he is expected back in main training when the Eagles return from a four-day break. "He's had a minor hip flexor, which has held him back post-Christmas," general manager of football Craig Vozzo told AFL.com.au. "He developed some soreness over the Christmas break. "Because he's had such a big period pre-Christmas with International Rules and a really big training block we've really cut him right back and are about to reset shortly with the main group.
Mitchell's season over after breaking leg at training Mitch Cleary and Nat Edwards Jan 11, 2019 5:31PM Tom Mitchell has been rushed to hospital with a suspected broken leg HAWTHORN star Tom Mitchell's season is likely over after he broke his left leg at training on Friday morning. The club later confirmed he suffered clean breaks in his tibia and fibula. Returning in the first session following the Christmas break, the Brownlow medallist sustained the injury during a tackling drill. Hawks doctor Michael Makdissi told hawthornfc.com.au it was unclear at this stage what the exact timeline for Mitchell's rehab program would be. "The X-rays confirmed two clean breaks to the tibia and fibula bones and Tom will undergo surgery this weekend to repair them," said Makdissi. "The positive news for Tom is that there are no other associated injuries and as such it is just a matter of waiting for the bones to heal. "Once this occurs, we will be in a better position to dictate the speed of Tom's rehabilitation and ultimately his return to the playing field." The 25-year-old will have surgery over the weekend, and then begin a rehabilitation program. "For Tom to suffer an injury like this is incredibly disappointing for both him and our footy club," Hawthorn football manager Graham Wright said. "He will undergo surgery over the weekend and as a result will most likely miss the 2019 season. "However, Tom is a very resilient young man and we have no doubt that he will tackle his rehab with the same professionalism and diligence with which he approaches his training." Thoughts are with Tom Mitchell. Hate seeing anyone get an injury like that. Hoping for a quick recovery Mitchell averaged over 35 disposals last year and polled 28 votes to win the Brownlow Medal. In an incredibly prolific 2018 season, Mitchell ranked No.1 in the competition for clearances and effective disposals per game, No.2 in contested possessions per game, No.8 in inside 50s per game and No.11 in tackles per game. At the Hawks he had a whopping 90 more clearances than the club's next best - Jaeger O'Meara (102) - last year.