CARLTON could have a number of stars returning for its clash against arch-rival Essendon on Saturday afternoon.
Charlie Curnow and Caleb Marchbank, as well as captain Marc Murphy, are all in line for the traditional clash at the MCG against the Bombers.
Head of Football Andrew McKay confirmed the trio would undergo testing towards the back-end of this week to determine their availability for selection.
“(Curnow) will be a test at the end of this week and we’re hopeful he’ll come up and be available for selection,” McKay said
“Marc Murphy is progressing well, he’s obviously had that plantar fascia problem for the last few weeks. He’ll be a test at the end of the week to see if he’ll be available to play.
“(Marchbank) sprained his ankle last week and didn’t play the game against Adelaide which was really unfortunate for us. It’s a minor sprain, so he’ll be a test at the end of the week too.”
On Sunday, the Club confirmed key forward Levi Casboult would miss the next four weeks of football after fracturing a rib in the fourth quarter of the Blues’ clash with Adelaide.
“He was in a fair bit of discomfort after the game finished,” McKay said.
“He won’t be available for four weeks, we need to wait for that rib to heal before he can be considered for selection.”
At VFL level, Kym Lebois will be sidelined for the next eight weeks after fracturing his collarbone in the Northern Blues’ game against Frankston on Saturday.
“He’ll have surgery on that collarbone this week, so he’ll be ruled out for the next eight weeks which is really unfortunate for Kym,” McKay said.
Important defenders Alex Silvagni and Tom Williamson could be in line for a senior recall in the coming weeks with the pair progressing well from achilles and back issues respectively.
“He (Silvagni) is progressing well but it’ll still probably be two weeks before he can be considered to play,” he said.
“Tom will miss this week but we’re hoping he’ll be alright for next week; he’ll need a test obviously at the end of next week to determine that.”
To further add to the Club’s growing injury list, youngster Harrison Macreadie suffered a setback at training late last week, and will be sidelined for approximately two weeks with a low-grade hamstring injury.
“Unfortunately, Harrison Macreadie strained his hamstring at training last week. It’s only mild, so he’ll be out for the next couple of weeks,” McKay said.
McKay said David Cuningham (hamstring) and Cillian McDaid (foot) would return to the track within the next fortnight.
“He (Cuningham) was unavailable to play against Frankston in the VFL. It’s only a minor strain so although he won’t play this week we’re hopeful he’ll be ok for the following week,” McKay said.
Ciaran Byrne (quad) and Jarrod Pickett (scaphoid) continue their rehabilitation programs, with the pair eyeing a return to the field within six weeks.
“He (Byrne) is going to be out for quite some time still, looking at around six weeks at the moment,” McKay said.
“Pickett had the pin out from the scaphoid bone in his wrist last week which is great progression for him. He’s back on the track, started running and he’ll integrate into training over the next week or two.”
“We’re looking forward to him coming back but it won’t be for another six weeks or so.”
INJURY LIST - 8 MAY:
Levi Casboult (ribs – 4 weeks)
Kym Lebois (collarbone – 8 weeks)
Marc Murphy (plantar fascia – test)
Charlie Curnow (ankle – test)
Caleb Marchbank (ankle – test)
David Cuningham (hamstring – 1 week)
Tom Williamson (back – 1 week)
Harrison Macreadie (hamstring – 2 weeks)
Alex Silvagni (achilles – 2 weeks)
Cillian McDaid (foot – 2 weeks)
Ciaran Byrne (quad – 6 weeks)
Jarrod Pickett (scaphoid – 6 weeks)
Sam Docherty (knee - season)
