St Kilda coach Alan Richardson has rubbished speculation that Sean Dempster is unhappy with the club.
The Herald Sun reported that Dempster was investigating with a doctor the history of head knocks he's received throughout his career, and was contemplating his position in the game, after reports said he was upset with being left out of their round one squad.
Richardson didn't agree with the reports, saying they "couldn't be further from the truth."
"Shinner is dealing with some medical issues. It's between Sean and the doctor really - I have an understanding of where that sits but for personal reasons I'm not going to go any further with that," he said.
"What I would like to clear up is the speculation around an incredibly highly respected footballer at our footy club getting overly disappointed with non-selection and giving the game away.
"It couldn't be any further from the truth. We're talking about a bloke that had bled for our footy club for a long time and that needs to get some things sorted out. There's no time frame on that."
Richardson didn't go into detail about Dempster's medical meetings, but did say however that he wasn't aware of the defender's issue while announcing the team to face Melbourne last round.
"No I didn't. He didn't get selected based on form," he said.
"There is a chance that his form - especially in the last (pre-season) game had been compromised by what he's dealing with now. That's speculation - I don't know."
