An undermanned back six missing its two key posts is the recipient of some good news this week, with makeshift full back Sam Day set to face Melbourne on Saturday at Metricon Stadium.
Day landed heavily after a marking contest in the second quarter of Saturday night’s loss to Geelong but has pulled up well and should take his place against the Demons.
“Sam played really well down back and did a lot of hard work on the night,” GM – Football Operations, Marcus Ashcroft told the Optomo Injury Report.
“Came off for a little part of the game, went back on, battled manfully for the remainder of that heavy loss but from Sam’s point of view some positive news.
“He pulled up really well on Monday, will train today and we expect to train Thursday and be available on Saturday afternoon.”
Speedy defender Adam Saad also looks set to reclaim his position in Gold Coast’s defence after overcoming a hip complaint.
The former Coburg Lion could have played against the Cats last week but it was deemed an unnecessary risk by the SUNS fitness staff.
“Saady was touch and go, we didn’t want to risk him last week. We think his run’s invaluable for our backline,” Ashcroft said.
“Again he’s made some really good progress over the weekend. Will train again today, Thursday and expected to be available on Saturday afternoon.”
Fellow defender Trent McKenzie left Simonds Stadium in a moonboot after injuring his left ankle, with an x-ray clearing him of any bone damage. An MRI later this week will confirm the full extent of the injury but the foundation SUN is expected to be sidelined for 2-3 weeks.
Meanwhile, experienced midfielder Michael Rischitelli flew with the team to Melbourne on Friday to visit renowned orthopaedic surgeon Greg Hoy about his troublesome shoulder and should also return to the field sometime this month.
“At this stage, it’s anywhere between one and three weeks. We want to make sure he gets enough strength and stability into his shoulder so he can play and once he starts playing we’ll manage that for the rest of the year,” Ashcroft said.
“But we expect him to play the remainder of the year, but I guess the first point of call is to ensure his shoulder is stable and strong enough to play.”
