West Coast could recall veteran Elliot Yeo as the Eagles look to rebound from another Sydney shellacking, but a young teammate’s season is officially over.
Yeo had West Coast hearts in mouths after being taken off midway through their win over Port Adelaide with a groin complaint, but thankfully avoided a major injury.
His presence was sorely missed in the Eagles’ disastrous 128-point loss to the Swans on Sunday, with Harley Reid effectively tagged out of the game without the big bodies to support him around the contest.
While the Eagles will be cautious over his return, given his injury history, high-performance manager Phil Merriman said Yeo would be a strong chance to return, provided he gets through training.
“Elliot has given himself every chance to be available this week,” he said.
“We will just make sure we are comfortable with him at training this week.”
There is more good news for Eagles fans with mature-aged recruit Milan Murdock ahead of schedule to return from a hamstring strain, and is now only a week from what was listed as a three-week recovery last week.
“Milan has ticked every box so far and all going to plan will be available for selection in round six for the derby against Fremantle,” Merriman said.
The Eagles will also be boosted by the return of Deven Robertson, who was suspended for the Swans clash, but unfortunately, young forward Jacob Newton’s season is over after fracturing his foot in the win over Port.
Scans confirmed Newton had a fracture in his navicular, the same injury that saw him overlooked in his draft year, and he will be sent for surgery.
“This will mean he will have a long-term reconditioning program, and we won’t see him take the field again this year,” Merriman said.
The club also continues to monitor key defender Harry Edwards, but says he is “progressing well” through concussion protocols.
Midfielder Jack Hutchinson is closing in on a return as he finishes his recovery from ankle surgery last year, while exciting draftee Fred Rodriguez is set to join the main training group as he builds his loads after a foot injury.
Fellow draftee Sam Allen is also progressing from his recovery from his ACL injury from before he was drafted, with the club listing him as eight weeks away from a return.
“Sam is pushing himself physically to ensure he’s ready to perform when the time comes,” Merriman said.
High -profile recruit Brandon Satarcevich continues to build his loads back up, but is still more than a month away from returning, while Tyler Brockman has suffered a setback after developing an infection following knee surgery.
WEST COAST INJURY LIST
Elliot Yeo (adductor) test
Milan Murdock (hamstring) 1 week
Jack Hutchinson (ankle) 1 week
Fred Rodriguez (foot) 2 weeks
Brandon Starcevich (calf) 5-7 weeks
Sam Allen (knee) 8 weeks
Tyler Brockman (knee) TBC
Harry Edwards (concussion) TBC
Noah Long (knee) season
Jacob Newton (foot) season