Western Bulldogs recruit Rory Lobb has been ruled out of his side's Round 2 clash with St Kilda due to an ankle injury.
The club confirmed on Monday afternoon that Lobb has required minor ankle surgery and will be sidelined for this Saturday's fixture.
The decision to put Lobb under the knife is a proactive measure by the Bulldogs, who have revealed further issues could arise for Lobb, who has had loose bodies in his ankle joint in recent seasons.
“Rory Lobb has developed some catching pain in his ankle, relating to some small loose bodies in the joint that have intermittently caused him issues in the last few years,” Western Bulldogs head of sports medicine Chris Bell said in a club statement.
“To minimise risk of him having recurrent issues, we have decided to be proactive and wash the loose bodies out with an ankle arthroscopy this afternoon.”
“We will determine Rory's return to play plan following the procedure, but don't expect it to keep him out for too long.”
The Bulldogs are hopeful defender Liam Jones will be fit to face the Saints on Saturday after the key backman suffered a neck injury during his side's Round 1 loss to Melbourne.
Jones has been cleared of serious damage to his neck, but will need to prove his fitness in the coming days to be deemed fit for selection.
“Liam Jones suffered a heavy impact to his head that caused his neck to overstretch,” Bell said.
“Immediately following, he had some referred pain and spasm into his shoulder. With any injury of this nature, we need to make sure that we clear any serious structural damage – so Liam was sent to hospital for scans.”
“Those scans came back with positive results.”
“As expected Liam still has some pain and muscle spasm associated with the injury, so we are working overtime to get him back on track and will determine his availability as the week progresses.”
Small forward Cody Weightman remains at least 3-5 weeks away from returning from a groin issue, while Arthur Jones (groin): 1-2 weeks, Ryan Gardner (elbow, 1-2 weeks), Tim O'Brien (hamstring, 1-2 weeks) Laitham Vandermeer (leg 4-5 weeks), Roarke Smith (foot, 4-5 weeks) and Dom Bedendo (groin, indefinite) are also currently sidelined for the coming weeks.
The Western Bulldogs return to their home ground at Marvel Stadium for Round 2, hosting St Kilda on Saturday night at 7:25pm.