UPDATE
Carlton has confirmed Zac Williams will undergo surgery for an ACL tear suffered during training on Friday.
Scans confirmed the news on Saturday, and Williams will be sent for surgery in the coming week. He's been ruled out of the season.
Carlton head of football Brad Lloyd was emotional in a statement outlining his support for Williams.
“These incidents are so unfortunate and we are all feeling for Zac, he could not have done any more this pre-season to get himself ready for the year,” Lloyd said in a club statement.
“He will undergo surgery to repair his ACL and from there, we will put a rehabilitation program in place for him over the next 12 months.
“He has had more than his fair share of bad luck with injury Zac but in that time he has built up a lot of resilience, which he will no doubt tap into, as we all support him on his road to recovery from here.”
The Blues also announced Sam Philip had undergone surgery on a foot fracture, with the forward’s recovery timeline to be confirmed.
EARLIER
Zac Williams has suffered a suspected ACL tear, 7 News’ Mitch Cleary reports.
Williams managed just nine games last year after dealing with a calf injury across the season.
He’s played 23 games for the Blues since moving across from GWS at the end of 2020 in what has been a stop-start career at Ikon Park.
The rebounding defender is among the competition’s elite at his best, as shown by his 36-disposal, 11-rebound 50 performance in Round 4 against Gold Coast last year.
More to come.
Shattering news at Carlton - Zac Williams has suffered a suspected ACL @7NewsMelbourne
— Mitch Cleary (@cleary_mitch) February 4, 2023