St Kilda will make at least one change to the side that upset Geelong at Etihad Stadium last weekend, with rebounding defender Jimmy Webster suffering a minor hamstring strain. And there may be more changes ahead of Saturday’s trip to the Gold Coast.
Medium-sized forward Nathan Wright will face a fitness test at Thursday’s main training session after he hurt his shoulder early against the Cats, before playing out the game in some duress.
With Webster unavailable for at least the next week, and maybe two, St Kilda Coach Alan Richardson may elect to recall half-back flanker Brodie Murdoch if he wants a like-for-like replacement.
The penetrating left-footer produced a strong performance in Sandringham’s comfortable win over the Northern Blues, collecting 29 possessions and eight inside 50s in an eye-catching effort that could see the South Australian return for his third senior appearance of 2016.
If Wright fails to get up for clash with the Suns, the match committee may look to recall livewire forward Jack Lonie or midfielder-forward Jack Sinclair.
Lonie was the carryover emergency last weekend and didn’t play at any level, but prior to the bye he had compiled a string of impressive performances in the VFL, which could lead to his first AFL appearance since the loss to West Coast in Round 8.
While Sinclair has spent the last two games at Sandringham and could return to the senior fold following a couple of good games at reserve level. The 21-year-old received plenty of close attention against the Northern Blues, but impressed with the defensive side of his game.
With Gold Coast boasting a tall forward line comprising potential All Australian Tom Lynch, Sam Day and emerging spearhead Peter Wright, Richardson may bring key defender Tom Lee straight back in to strengthen the back six.
Lee missed last weekend’s win over Geelong due to a knee injury, but with Sam Fisher and Sean Dempster still sidelined, the transformed defender could be called upon for the trip to Metricon Stadium.
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