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Fremantle will enter Friday night’s AFL blockbuster against Carlton without their most potent weapon after ruckman Aaron Sandilands was ruled out with a knee injury.
Sandilands hyper-extended his left knee in last week’s win over St Kilda, with some fluid then seeping into his calf and causing issues there.
The 211cm giant will be replaced in the side by former Adelaide ruckman Jon Griffin, who performed admirably last season when Sandilands was sidelined by turf toe.
Fremantle coach Ross Lyon was confident Sandilands would be fit to resume against Gold Coast next week, saying the ruckman’s latest injury had nothing to do with his pre-season calf issue.
But the 29-year-old’s absence on Friday night will be music to the ears of Carlton’s star-studded midfield, who can now expect plenty of good service from Blues pair Shaun Hampson and Matthew Kreuzer.
Of the nine games Sandilands missed last year, Fremantle managed just three wins, with those triumphs coming against Essendon, Gold Coast and Sydney.
Sandilands has taken his tap-winning ability to even greater heights in 2012, averaging 46 hit-outs per game over the opening four rounds.
Lyon backed Griffin to provide a solid effort against the Blues, but conceded his team’s midfield structure would need to be tweaked due to Sandilands’ absence.
“We’ll keep it pretty simple for Jon,” Lyon said on Thursday.
“I’m not expecting miracles. I just want him to compete and give our smaller brigade an opportunity to compete with the ball in their area.
“We’re not a one-player team, that’s the way we view it. I’m not losing too much sleep over it.
“We’ve got real confidence in Jon Griffin. He’s a bona fide ruckman.”
Lyon said Sandilands could have pushed through the injury, but the club was reluctant to risk such an important asset.
Fremantle midfielder Nat Fyfe will make his return from a shoulder injury, with Nick Suban dropped after a quiet start to the season.
The Blues made five changes to the side that were upset by Essendon last week, recalling Andrew Walker, Dennis Armfield, Bret Thornton, Aaron Joseph and Jordan Russell for Jeremy Laidler (knee), Andrew Carrazzo (shoulder), Chris Yarran (toe), Paul Bower and Brock McLean.
Walker hasn’t played since injuring his quad during the pre-season, but Ratten backed the 25-year-old to make a solid impact upon his return.
“He’s an elite runner of the competition, not just our football club, so we won’t have any problems there,” Ratten said.
“I think the players we’ve brought back in the team would be in our top six in running … so I don’t think we’ll have a problem with running out the game.”
Ratten also had a message for his wife, who is due to give birth on Saturday.
“Just hang in there babe, please,” he said with a laugh, before confirming he would take the red-eye flight back to Melbourne after the game.
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