Questions to ponder ahead of Round 3: Can the Pies be re-heated, Are Port the real deal, Can Jezza's form last for the Cats?
Collingwood look far off the conquering team of 2023 and one aspect of real concern is their struggles in defence.
Adelaide captain Taylor Walker’s fitness plan has failed and he could spend a month on the AFL sidelines, his coach says.
Walker missed Adelaide’s 37-point win against Western Bulldogs on Friday night, his first absence of a mid-season spell.
Crows coach Don Pyke expects Walker to miss between two and four weeks as he tries to build fitness after a series of injury niggles.
Walker missed Adelaide’s season-opener with a foot injury and Round 7 with a hamstring concern before reporting back with glute soreness last weekend.
The skipper, who also didn’t play a pre-season game, has been sent for what Pyke describes as a “serious block of training”.
“This is a pretty taxing game that we ask our guys to play and when you haven’t done a lot of pre-season, we might have asked a bit much of Taylor,” Pyke said after the 9.9 (63) to 2.14 (26) win against the Dogs.
“And that (injuries) is the consequence.
“We”re not thinking long-term. We’re thinking more, if you had to pin me to a number, two or three weeks.
“It really depends on how quickly we can build the volume in him.
“If we can’t build volume in him quickly, it will be three or four weeks. If we can build that quickly, it could be two to three.”
Pyke admitted the plan for Walker after his injury-troubled-season faltered.
“As it is with all plans, they all suffer … opposition and/or circumstances that change,” he said..
“In his case, we just haven’t been able to get the continuity of training and playing to allow him to really build into the season.
“The decision has been made to back him off and get him right.
“It’s not like he’s got an injury that is keeping him out, per se.
“It’s more that he just needs some time to actually get his body right so he can play the level he needs to play.
“And I think that is being fair to him and also fair to the team.”
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.
Collingwood look far off the conquering team of 2023 and one aspect of real concern is their struggles in defence.
Coaches of Adelaide and Geelong have blasted the "dangerous" pitch invader who was manhandled by players in their AFL game. Geelong coach Chris Scott…
Are clubs better off signing coaches early in the year to take the pressure off them, or waiting to see what they achieve throughout the season?
In my Six Points column last week, I loudly and whatever is the opposite of proudly proclaimed that the Western Bulldogs were the AFL's…
Nicks has received an extension as a show of faith, but by and large, the pass mark for Adelaide this season is a finals appearance.
Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks has signed a two-year contract extension to remain at the helm of the AFL club until the end of 2026.…