Western Bulldogs young star Sam Darcy will miss at least the first half of the 2022 AFL season after he was diagnosed with a navicular bone foot stress injury.
Darcy, son of Bulldogs legend Luke Darcy, will head into his first AFL season with a “conservative” approach according to the club.
The Bulldogs today revealed the No.2 draft pick developed a navicular bone foot stress injury late last year.
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“Given Sam is a developing young athlete with a bright future, we want to make sure that we are conservative in his management and take our time to build a resilient and durable athlete,” said Bulldogs head of sports medicine Chris Bell.
“The management plan in place for Sam will have a long-term approach, and the club will confirm whether this involves playing games in the second half of the season once we accurately track progress over the coming months.”
In other injury news, the club confirmed recruit Tim O’Brien will miss the start of the season due to a hamstring injury.
“At this stage of the preseason we are going to be conservative with Tim and his management of the hamstring as we look to build continuity and an uninterrupted season ahead,” Bell said.
O’Brien, a veteran of 97 games, departed Hawthorn during the off-season for the Bulldogs.
Meanwhile, Carlton’s pre-season has also copped some dreaded news after it was revealed that leading goalkicker Harry McKay could miss the start of the season due to foot soreness.
McKay was last year’s Coleman Medal winner after leading the competition with a league-high 58 goals in the home and away season..