The AFL's concussion panel has cleared Collingwood defender Nathan Murphy to continue playing following the premiership Magpie's concussion during September's grand final.
That head knock was the 10th concussion of Murphy's career since being drafted in 2017, with the 24-year-old dealing with head trauma on multiple occasions in 2023 alone.
Murphy would be sidelined under the AFL's concussion protocols after being hit high by St Kilda's Anthony Caminiti in Collingwood's Gather Round encounter with the Saints in April, with a second concussion occurring in this year's season decider against Brisbane.
Murphy was subbed out of the Magpies' eventual four-point win over the Lions in the opening term after an early collision, with the head knock adding to a lengthy history of concussions for the defender.
The AFL's medical concussion panel had begun to investigate Murphy's playing future following his most recent head knock, with a decision made to allow the Magpie to continue playing in 2024.
โNathan's health and wellbeing remains our absolute priority," Collingwood football boss Graham Wright said in a club statement.
โNathan suffered a concussion late in the first quarter of the Grand Final and following this incident โ combined with his medical history โ the Club together with Nathan and his family, engaged with concussion specialists andย the expert concussion medical panel convened by the AFL to assess a return to play.
โAt the conclusion of this process, the expert concussion medical panel convened by the AFL determined that Nathan was able to return to playing football in the elite AFL competition.โ
Murphy's approval to play in 2024 will come as a major boost to senior coach Craig McRae and his side, who have likely lost key forward Dan McStay for the entire season due to a recent ACL injury at training.
The Magpies have three list spots currently available and could open a further vacancy by moving McStay to the long-term injury list.
Collingwood has had former Essendon tall Josh Eyre and VAFA league footballer Sam Sofronidis both training through the Supplemental Selection Period as potential backline reinforcements.
The pair could still earn list spots with the Magpies despite Murphy's clearance.
Collingwood also has former Saint Jack Bytel, ex-Port Adelaide tall Brynn Teakle, VFL captain Campbell Hustwaite and Footscray midfielder Lachie Sullivan training for list spots over the summer.
The Magpies' 2024 campaign will commence with a trip to face GWS on Saturday, March 7 - a season opener that will follow pre-season fixtures against North Melbourne and Richmond.
