Richmond forward Tom Lynch will miss the opening round of the AFL season, but is still hopeful of an early return.
Plus a rare bit of bad news on the injury front for St Kilda.
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North Melbourne veteran goes down | 00:53
Richmond forward Tom Lynch will miss the opening round of the AFL season as he continues to recover from a serious foot injury.
Lynch hasn’t played since April last year when he suffered the injury and was subsequently ruled out for the season.
Richmond is hopeful Lynch will be available to take on Carlton in round one five days after their opening round clash.
It leaves trade recruit Jacob Koschitzke a likely forward starter along with Noah Balta.
Lynch has been a pivotal part of Richmond’s forward line since arriving at the club in 2019, playing a key role in the 2019 and 2020 premierships.
He booted 63 goals in 2022 before his 2023 campaign was ravaged by injury.
St Kilda defender Ben Paton is set to miss three months of the season with a ruptured pec.
The 25-year-old suffered the injury at training, marking the latest lengthy injury setback for him.
Paton recovered from a broken tibia and fibula in 2021, but returned in 2022 and played 20 games, before managing 12 in 2023.
“This is obviously a disappointing blow for Ben,” Executive General Manager of Football David Misson said.
“Sadly, this isn’t the first time Ben has dealt with a lengthy injury setback having broken his tibia and fibula in 2021, however he proved that he has the resilience and strength to overcome such adversity.
“Ben will see the surgeon today next and will likely have surgery later this week.
“We will be best poised to ascertain his return to play timeline after that, however, early indications suggest the rehabilitation period with be at least three months.”
The Saints also confirmed trade recruit Paddy Dow is at least a fortnight away from resuming full training after a knock to his knee last week.
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