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Gold Coast have confirmed Suns star Ben King has ruptured the ACL in his right knee.
The 21-year-old was taking part in the Suns’ match simulation on Thursday, but fell to the ground during a contest with number five draft pick Mac Andrew.
King was quickly supported by coach Stuart Dew and Suns teammates.
But the club confirmed King has suffered the dreaded season-ending injury.
“Unfortunately Ben’s ruptured his ACL in his right knee in a pretty simple marking contest that he’d been in many times before,” GC SUNS General Manager of Football Performance Wayne Campbell said.
“Ben’s going well, whenever someone goes down with an ACL it’s shattering for a start.
“He’s got a really strong family and we’ve got some really good support around him from the footy club, it’s not ideal by any stretch but we know Ben’s strength of character will see him attack the challenge in a positive manner.”
Devastated. Scans have confirmed what we feared for Ben King.
We’re all behind you Kingy ❤️????https://t.co/tJkqKyYfip
— Gold Coast Suns (@GoldCoastSUNS) February 10, 2022
The club will consult with its medical team, specialists and Ben in the coming days before deciding on the best course of action for rehabilitation.
King underwent scans on Thursday afternoon and was hoping for better-than-expected news.
Ben King. (Photo by Graham Denholm/AFL Photos via Getty Images)
“We’ll just have to wait and see but fingers crossed,” he told the Nine Network.
“They’ve (emotions) settled a bit.
“That’s just footy. Get injured, that’s just part of it.”
King is out of contract at the end of the 2022 season, with clubs in Victoria already trying to prise him away from south-east Queensland.
He has kicked 89 goals – 47 of them coming last year – in 53 games since debuting in Round 9, 2019.
King is a player the struggling Suns can’t afford to lose with the club yet to play finals since entering the AFL in 2011.
Gold Coast finished 16th last season with seven wins.
King’s twin brother Max plays for St Kilda while Essendon have also been heavily linked to Ben.
There has been speculation about Ben returning to Victoria ever since he was drafted by Gold Coast back in 2018.
The Suns were unimpressed by a cheeky tweet from St Kilda’s social media team on draft night that read: “Ben, if you ever want to come home.”
© AAP
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