Bulldogs forward Mitch Hannan has suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon that will keep him sidelined until at least the midway point of the 2024 season. The injury came in a 66-point win in the VFL for Footscray against North Melbourne on Saturday.
Head of Sports Medicine Chris Bell provided an update in a club statement.
โHe was running in space, with the injury happening spontaneously and without warning," said Bell.
โMitch has already had surgery to repair the tendon.
โWith a 9-12 month recovery period common for these types of injuries, we will put our arms around Mitch to support him over the next few weeks before we start to map out his rehabilitation plan.โ
Hannan has only managed 30 games for the Dogs since moving from Melbourne back in 2021. He played 17 games for the Bulldogs in the 2021 season, including a grand final loss to his former side.
Along with Hannan, Anthony Scott and Robbie McComb will be unavailable next weekend after suffering concussions in their respective games at AFL and VFL level.
Defender Ryan Gardner was rested against the Tigers due to ongoing issues with his ankle and toe.
โTo make sure that these niggles didn't impact Ryan's performance, we thought it was best to give Ryan the week off playing to allow these niggles to improve," said the Head of Sports Medicine.
โWe will monitor Ryan this week to determine if he returns to availability.โ
Some positive news for the Bulldogs as defender Alex Keath will be available for selection after missing last week's clash against the Tigers with a concussion. The 31-year-old will provide some much-needed height ahead of their game against the Hawks.
Both Hayden Crozier and Harvey Gallagher are returning to full training with the side and could possibly put their hands up for selection if they get through unscathed.
The Bulldogs will look to solidify a top-eight spot as they take on the Hawks at the UTAS Stadium at 1:10 PM on Saturday.
