Melbourne defender staring at three months on sidelines, star Demons & Tigers to miss scratch match
Melbourne has revealed defender Daniel Turner will miss 10-12 weeks with a stress fracture in his leg.
Turner, a 2021 mid-season draft pickup, made his AFL debut in 2022 and made two senior appearances but is now staring at a delayed start to the 2024 season in a blow for Melbourne’s defensive depth.
“Daniel has unfortunately sustained a stress fracture in his femur,” Demons footy boss Alan Richardson said in a statement ahead of Melbourne’s scratch match against Richmond on Sunday.
“This will see him miss quite a significant block, with his return-to-play timeline being 10 to 12 weeks.
“While this news is really disappointing, we know the type of person and athlete Daniel is, and expect him to attack his rehab with a positive and determined mindset over the coming weeks.”
Turner, 22, made 10 VFL appearances in 2023.
He’s set to be one of more than half a dozen absentees for Melbourne, although few are because of serious injury concerns.
Here come the 2024 Demons 😈 Your first chance to see the boys in action has arrived.
— Melbourne Demons (@melbournefc) February 17, 2024
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A toe concern will keep swingman Harrison Petty on the sidelines, but the Demons played down the severity.
“Harrison has been experiencing some soreness in his toe, which has meant he hasn’t been able to build up his training loads as we would’ve liked,” Richardson said.
“He won’t play on Sunday, but we will continue to monitor him in the lead up to our practice match against Carlton.”
Tom McDonald and Lachie Hunter won’t play due to calf soreness, while Charlie Spargo has a similar issue with his Achilles.
Recruit Shane McAdam came to Melbourne from Adelaide with some hype, but he too won’t feature.
“Shane has some ongoing tightness in his calf, and we have made the decision to take a conservative approach,” Richardson added.
“He is going to be such an important player for us, so we don’t want to be risking anything at this stage of the pre-season.”
Angus Brayshaw is also battling an illness and won’t play despite making a full recovery from a concussion suffered in last year’s semi-final loss. In better news for Melbourne, Clayton Oliver has been named after a rocky off-season.
For the Tigers, stars in the form of Dion Prestia, Dustin Martin, Tim Taranto, Liam Baker, Tom Lynch and Toby Nankervis won't play, but Prestia is the only one carrying an injury.
Melbourne and Richmond will meet at Casey Fields at 10:00am on Sunday, the first of a series of practice games all AFL clubs will take part in over the coming fortnight.