Waalitj Marawar are hopeful Jeremy McGovern and Jake Waterman will be fit to face Narrm, with Elliot Yeo also listed as a test and a good chance to play, but small forward Noah Long’s season is over after confirmation he will undergo knee surgery.
Yeo (groin) and Waterman (concussion protocol) both missed the loss to Collingwood but are in the mix to return on Sunday for Sir Doug Nicholls Round.
McGovern has made an impressive recovery from a heavy landing against the Magpies which saw him taken to hospital for tests.
“’Gov’ got the heavy knock over the weekend. We removed him from the game as a precaution,” High Performance Manager Mat Inness told westcoasteagles.com.au.
“He’s pulled up really well. He’ll be a test later in the week but hopefully he gets up.
“’Yeoy’ has been training for the last week. He hasn’t had any symptoms since early last week. He’ll be a test later this week also.”
Unfortunately, Long will miss the rest of the season after the decision was made to send him for surgery on his posterior cruciate ligament.
“’Longy’ had a consultation with the specialist, unfortunately he needs surgery which will put a finish to his season,” Inness said.
Speedy forward Jack Petruccelle will miss the Narrm clash after hurting his ankle against Collingwood, but should be back in the short-term.
“’Petch’ had a really low-grade syndesmosis so he was taken out of the game. He will miss this week, possibly one or two after that,” Inness said.
In more positive news, ruck recruit Matt Flynn (knee) and understudy Harry Barnett (shin) are close to returning, with Flynn almost ready to play his first game in blue and gold.
Zane Trew is set to be available after missing two WAFL Eagles matches in the concussion protocols.
“Jake Waterman and ‘Trewy’ are both through the concussion protocols so they will train fully on Thursday and hopefully be available to play this weekend,” Inness said.
“’Flynny’ has been full training for the last week or two. With the WAFL bye he’ll do a big session with the WAFL players this week and we hope to see him on the field after that.
“Harry Barnett had that little bit of shin soreness over the last week or two. With the WAFL bye this week it gives us another opportunity to give him another week to try and rebuild his load.”
First-year midfielder Clay Hall is managing a hand complaint but won’t miss any football with the WAFL bye for the state game.
“With the WAFL bye we’re taking it as an opportunity to freshen him up and we’re hoping to see him after the WAFL bye,” Inness said.
Injury list:
Oscar Allen Knee 3-4 weeks
Harry Barnett Shin 1-2 weeks
Rhett Bazzo Groin 4-5 weeks
Matt Flynn Knee 1-2 weeks
Clay Hall Hand Test
Elijah Hewett Foot Post-bye
Callum Jamieson Hamstring 2-3 weeks
Noah Long Knee Season
Jeremy McGovern Internal Test
Jack Petruccelle Ankle 1-3 weeks
Elliot Yeo Groin Test
