Fremantle ruckman Sean Darcy will travel to the Aspetar Sports Medical Clinic in Doha, Qatar, to continue his rehabilitation from knee surgery he underwent in August.
Darcy managed just 12 games at AFL level in 2024 following lingering knee concerns, which were ultimately acted upon at the close of Fremantle's campaign.
Darcy suffered his latest knee injury in Round 21 against Essendon, however, he was sent for an arthroscope post-season.
The club said Darcy is "tracking well" and the late pre-season trip is well-timed to complement the 26-year-old's rehabilitation process. The star ruckman is expected to spend a week in the Asian country, following in the footsteps of other footballers who have battled knee and soft tissue injuries in their careers.
Most recently, Carlton's Adam Cerra and Collingwood's Jordan De Goey have been housed at the facility earlier this pre-season, before the former signed a five-year contract extension, indicating the faith in the intensive Doha experience.
Fremantle will be hoping for a similar outcome with Darcy, who currently holds a contract expiring in 2030.
Fremantle general manager Joe Brierty said now is the appropriate time for Darcy's trip overseas.
โSean will spend a week at Aspetar Sports Medical Clinic consulting with their specialists to embed some new strategies in his program,โ Brierty said.
โThese strategies will specifically relate to Sean's strength program and functional movement to complement a lot of the work already implemented by our Performance Health team.
โWith things progressing well and looking to commence Sean's re-integration into football, we are now at a stage where we feel that the timing is right to continue to invest in practices to aid his progression.
โWe're looking for any short-term gains to assist with Sean's return to play, but we are also looking at the long-term stability of his knee.โ
Darcy becomes the second Docker to head to Doha for treatment and testing after Fremantle sent defender Heath Chapman to the medical clinic last pre-season after a series of hamstring issues.
