CARLTON will likely be without Lachie Plowman when they face the Giants this Sunday however fellow defender Nic Newman is considered a “good chance” of making the trip.

Plowman is set to miss a week after a knock late in Saturday’s match saw him leave the MCG with a fractured cheekbone.

Director of High Performance Andrew Russell confirmed the backman would require surgery over the coming days. 

“Plowman got a knock very late in the game and unfortunately fractured his cheekbone,” said Russell.

“He’s going to have surgery this week and he’ll probably miss this week’s game.”

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Tom Williamson also suffered a hyper-extension to his back on Saturday, sidelining him for at least the next few weeks.

“Willo hyper-extended his back in the fourth quarter. He came off and was a bit restricted when he came back on the ground,” he said.

“At this stage he’s pretty sore and we don’t expect him to play for the next couple of weeks.”

Blues fans will likely have to wait another week for the return of key defender Liam Jones as he manages remaining concussion symptoms from Round 7.

“Jonesy has still got some low-grade symptoms – it’s not unexpected given the big hit that he did have,” he said.

“At this stage we don’t expect him to be playing this week.”

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It’s not all bad news, however, with experienced defenders Kade Simpson and Nic Newman expected to re-join the team over the coming weeks.

Newman is likely to make his return this Sunday against the Giants having sat out the last two rounds with patella tendon soreness. 

“Newy’s patella is settling really well, he’s a test to play and is a good chance,” he said.

“We’ll run him through his paces this week and see if he gets up.”

There was a similar view for Simpson, who is on track for a return after being sidelined with a hamstring after the Blues clash with Hawthorn. 

“Simmo is recovering really well from that hamstring. We think that he’ll miss one more game and then he should be back for the St Kilda game,” he said.