Gold Coast defender Jade Pregelj's season has come to an untimely end after scans confirmed that the 30-year-old had sustained an ACL injury.
The Queenslander sustained the injury during the opening half of the Suns' hard-fought win over Richmond last Sunday at Metricon Stadium.
The dual QWAFL best and fairest winner will now begrudgingly join Isabel Huntington, Kate Lutkins, Brianna Davey, Harriet Cordner and Gabby Collingwood on the sidelines as the league's spate of ACL injuries continues to wreak havoc.
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Within a statement released on Wednesday morning, Gold Coast AFLW Physiotherapist Jasmine Herlihy explained that Pregelj's scans undertaken earlier this week would see her miss the remainder of 2022.
“Jade had an MRI yesterday and unfortunately that’s shown us that she’s got an ACL tear so she will be out for the rest of the season unfortunately,” Herlihy delineated.
“She is going to consult with a specialist this week and then we’ll see what management we want to go ahead with.”
Suns Head of Women's Football Fiona Sessarago claimed that while the defender was currently down, the entire club would support her during her rehabilitation period.
“It’s absolutely devastating news for Jade who is a much-loved teammate and has been so important for the club over our first three seasons,” Sessarago said.
“Jade is one of the toughest players at the SUNS and we have full confidence she will attack her rehab to come back stronger than ever.”
Pregelj has featured in each of the Suns' 19 appearances since joining the competition in 2020, with the Logan-born back averaging 5.3 disposals across her three games this campaign.