His lack of mental acuity was proven recently on live television when he said that it was a shame that small clubs like North would lose players to Ryan Bastinac to expansion teams like GWS. This ignores the fact that Bastinac hasn’t signed to GWS and more pertinently, completely glosses over the fact that North have protected two players – Andrew Swallow and Todd Goldstein – from very determined GWS approaches.

It happened again when I was watching On The Couch when Gerard Healy praised the work of Jack Atley. Jack who? What number is he?

Please keep reading – this isn’t a North whinge. I only raise the Bastinac and Jack Atley matters because I’m a North supporter and they stuck out like the proverbial dog’s bollocks. But it isn’t just a North thing. It happens to every club. Every week I’m confronted by stuff in the footy media where I think to myself “That’s just wrong. Plain and simple wrong”.

A quick scan across pretty much any of the club boards on BigFooty reveals similar complaints about glaring inaccuracies and mistakes by the footy media.

Why should we mug punters have to put up with the likes of Shaw and his ignorance simply because he played a number of games for the largest supported club? And this is, if we’re being honest, the only reason he makes a generous income from the footy media.

Sure, having played the game at the highest level gives one an understanding that the vast majority of us don’t. But it isn’t a green light to make regular mistakes.

What makes this lack of knowledge – a sin of either omission or commission that is equally evil in mine eyes – is that it really shouldn’t be too hard for these people to get right. In fact, it should be impossible for them to stuff up.

I worked as a political journalist in the UK for a long while. I effectively blagged my way into a job, openly admitting that I couldn’t name the parliamentary under-secretary for defence acquisitions but that I had the talent and the experience to report politics and would quickly learn all the various players.

My new employers bought it and put me on a semi-rookie list type arrangement: if in three months I’d shown I’d grasped everything, they’d make me permanent and give me a pay rise.

So I set myself to learning all the names of the various government, opposition and minor party figures, where they sat, what their various jobs were.

And I found that rather than trying to learn this all by reading Hansard or even just Googling someone every time an unfamiliar name came up (even though this was useful) the more I simply immersed myself in the whole culture, the quicker I learned things, often without realisation I was actually learning them.

Before long I could talk the jargon and drop names and not get lost when people started talking about various House of Commons sub-committees: because I was immersed in the world I was working in.

I’m pretty immersed in footy too. Immersed enough to write these blogs, enough to have gone up to Ballarat, certainly immersed enough to not make basic mistakes on a regular basis like some of this lot do.

And I’m hardly alone there. Plenty of people know footy just as well, and in many cases better, than I do.

I do want to hear from people who have played the game at the highest level.

But is it too much to ask that they actually take the time to be involved in it full-time still?

Part 1 previewed the first four Irishmen’s prospects for the coming year and included the Brisbane Lions’ Pearce Hanley and Carlton’s Zach Tuohy. These are the remaining Irishmen to watch in 2012…

Marty Clarke (Collingwood)

Collingwood’s prodigal Irish son has returned for a second bash at the AFL having spent the last two years at home playing Gaelic Football with County Down.

While Clarke always proclaimed his desire to return to Collingwood at some stage, his return brings with it pressures that he would not have experienced in his first incarnation as an AFL footballer.

The Magpies gave up their first pick in the National Draft to bring Clarke back to the club (in a deal with GWS Giants that also included youngster Jamie Elliott) and he will have to deal with the heavy expectations that such a costly price tag brings.

However, we saw first time around that Clarke is well equipped to prosper in the AFL and one would think that he will be able to re-adapt quickly to deal with the rigours of the oval ball game once again.

Prospects for 2012

The retirement of Leon Davis has opened a spot in the Collingwood back-line for a creative rebounding defender which Clarke has the skillset to fill.

His skipper Nick Maxwell has spoken of the prospect of Clarke playing further up the ground, and with injury clouds hanging over the likes of Ben Johnson and Alan Didak, this pre-season talk could turn into a regular-season reality.

All of this indicates that there are spots available in the Pies’ lineup. The half he played on Saturday against Melbourne had all the hallmarks of a man trying to shake off the rust after the best part of three years away from the game and he should be better for the hit-out. It will now be interesting to watch Clarke throughout the rest of the pre-season to see whether that rust falls off and if he can live up to the substantial expectations surrounding him.

A good year if…

He manages to cement a spot in a quality Collingwood outfit and plays the majority of the games this year. With minimal pre-season game-time to date, it is difficult to assess where Clarke is at but reports coming out of the Magpies’ camp have been positive and on this basis, you would expect a significant impact from him in 2012.

Caolan Mooney (Collingwood)

Following John Heslin’s premature departure from Richmond after just six months in Australia, Mooney is the only new recruit to the Irish AFL corps in 2012.

Despite the fact that he has just turned 19 and has only been in Australia a few months, big things are expected from the young footballing prodigy from County Down, which is also home to team-mate Marty Clarke.

In fact, Clarke himself suggested that Mooney could emulate his own feats from 2007 and play in his first season at Collingwood, such is the pace and skill he possesses (see the video below of Mooney in action in a school game last year).

Prospects for 2012

By all accounts, the coaching staff at the Magpies have been hugely impressed with Mooney’s athletic capabilities and with the abundance of pace he has, it would be foolish to completely write off his chances of playing senior footy in 2012.

Selection for Collingwood’s first two NAB Cup games is a promising sign and he has shown glimpses of his immense potential in both matches but it is likely that Mooney will commence his Australian Rules career in the VFL. If he impresses there then who knows?

A good year if…

For most first year Irish rookies, a few games in the reserves to ease them into a steep learning curve is about all that can be expected.

However, such is the hype surrounding Mooney that one could conceivably see him coming into senior consideration at some point, especially considering the injuries sustained by Magpie forwards Andrew Krakouer and Brent Macaffer. Don’t rule anything out for this young speedster.

Setanta O’hAilpin (GWS Giants)

With Kennelly’s retirement, Setanta now finds himself with the dubious honour of being the elder Irish statesman in the AFL.

His eight years with Carlton came to a close in the off-season as he was cut from the Blues’ list, with many Carlton supporters disappointed to see him leave after a number solid performances in a Carlton forward line lacking other tall targets.

The Giants picked him up at the tail end of the National Draft and Setanta will be looking for a new lease of life as an experienced head among many callow youngsters in Western Sydney.

Prospects for 2012

As part of the leadership group at the fledgling Giants, one would expect to see Setanta play every game this year, barring injury.

A minor knock has kept him out of the Giants’ pre-season games to date but he should be good to go for round 1.

It will be interesting to see how he adapts to a situation where he won’t be receiving gift-wrapped passes from Judd, Murphy et al.

A good year if…

He can ward off the injuries which have prevented him putting together a string of games over the past few years and provide leadership in a forward line which can expect to be starved of ball for long periods this year.

30-40 goals is probably unrealistic but it’s difficult to know how many goals would be considered a success until we get a bearing on how competitive the Giants’ midfield is.

However, if the Giants are to kick winning scores, the onus will be on Setanta to pitch in with more than his fair share given the lack of other recognised forward options.

Tommy Walsh (Sydney Swans)

The Swans gave up picks 35 and 68 to acquire the big Kerry man from St Kilda in the off-season.

It was a move that many considered to be a risk, given Walsh had not yet played an AFL game after two years at the Melbourne club.

While he cuts an extremely impressive figure on the training track, it remains to be seen whether Walsh has the ability and the smarts to play the power forward role earmarked for him at the Swans by John Longmire.

Prospects for 2012

The talented Sam Reid aside, the Swans are not exactly overflowing with tall forward options, which suggests Walsh will get ample opportunities to impress.

Adam Goodes and Mike Pyke are stopgaps best deployed elsewhere, while Jesse White, who could turn out to be Walsh’s main contender for a spot, has yet to convince at AFL level.

A two-possession half in the first round of the NAB Cup last weekend proved to be a less than auspicious debut for the Ivan Drago lookalike but he showed significant improvements in the big win against North Melbourne on Saturday. Swans fans will hope that his stats and performances will improve as he becomes more accustomed to the pace of the game and with his new Sydney team-mates.

A good year if…

All indications from the Swans’ coaching staff since Walsh was traded have suggested that he will get a decent crack at making the full-forward spot his own and it is up to him whether he grabs the opportunity.

At this stage of his development, Walsh will only consider the year a success if he can nail down a regular spot in the starting 22 and become a goal scorer and creator for the Swans.

His career in Gaelic Football (Irish Young Footballer of the Year in 2008) illustrates the immense talent Walsh possesses, but whether he can translate that to consistent AFL performances remains to be seen.

With 2011 having seen the retirement of Tadhg Kennelly after 10 successful years with the Sydney Swans, which of course included a memorable Premiership in 2005, the onus now falls on the new wave of Irish recruits to prove that they have what it takes to live up to the lofty standards set by Kennelly and the great Jim Stynes.

The likes of Zach Tuohy and the returning Marty Clarke will be looking to establish themselves in the first 22 of their respective Premiership-chasing outfits in Carlton and Collingwood.

Pearce Hanley will want to build on his breakout year in 2011 with the Brisbane Lions by consolidating his position as the premier Irishman in the competition.

Whatever your views on the whole area of international recruitment, it is undeniable that Irish players are now a firm feature of the AFL and their progress will provide an interesting aside to the 2012 season.

Below is Part 1 of the Irishmen to look out for in 2012…

Pearce Hanley (Brisbane Lions)

Hanley was undoubtedly the Irish star of the AFL in 2011, appearing in every game for the Lions and finishing fourth in the club’s Best and Fairest.

Coming into 2011, Hanley was on the fringes of the Lions’ 22 after he showed glimpses of his potential during a string of impressive games at the back end of 2010.

Few would have predicted that Hanley would develop quickly into one of Michael Voss’ most important players, providing pace and accurate distribution coming out of the backline.

Prospects for 2012

The big question for Hanley now is can he back up his stellar 2011 form with further improvement in 2012?

The player himself has spoken of a desire to move into midfield but all indications in pre-season would suggest that he is likely to remain on a half-back flank for the time being at least, with sporadic stints further up the ground on a wing likely also.

A good year if…

He can average 20 odd touches a game, continue to provide his trademark dash with ball in hand and eradicate the tendency to have one brain fade every game. Midfield-time would be a bonus.

Niall McKeever (Brisbane Lions)

The big man from County Antrim was something of a surprise package in 2011, playing 10 senior games and competing admirably as a tall defender against some of the top forwards in the business.

One of the fittest players in the Brisbane squad, McKeever has many of the physical attributes vital to the make-up of a modern AFL player and Michael Voss is a known fan of his commitment on the field and willingness to learn the game both on and off of it.

Prospects for 2012

The number of games McKeever plays in 2012 could well depend on the health of other members of the Lions backline, as it was only an injury to Daniel Merrett in 2011 that gave him a run of games in the first team.

However, a strong showing over the next couple of pre-season matches could see him nail down a first-22 spot and if the improvement levels he showed last year continue, McKeever will be a tough man to dislodge.

A good year if…

He plays 14-16 games and continues to show noticeable signs of improvement. A few jousts with some big names à la Travis Cloke last year would also be a welcome sight.

Some tweaks to his awkward but strangely effective kicking style would be pleasing but not overly important in the grand scheme of things.

Zach Tuohy (Carlton)

Tuohy is coming into 2012 off the back of a stellar finish to the 2011 season.

While he had been touted throughout 2011 as a potential rookie upgrade due to his strong performances with the Northern Bullants, it wasn’t until Round 11 that Tuohy finally made his debut against Port Adelaide.

His first touch wasn’t exactly one for the scrapbook – an attempted bounce that went backwards over his head – but he showed enough to earn a further ten appearances during the remainder of the season, including a sub appearance in the finals game with West Coast in which he kicked a memorable goal in the final quarter (see below).

Prospects for 2012

Competition for places is arguably hotter at the Blues than at any other club in the competition, such is their depth at the current time.

However, Tuohy should be in line to play his fair share of games in defence this year. A solid if unspectacular performance on Sunday against the Bulldogs got his season up and running and whether he can force his way into the 22 for the Blues’ round 1 clash with Richmond will depend on whether he can build on that in the NAB Cup over the next couple of weeks.

A good year if…

He plays the majority of Carlton’s games and starts to fulfil his massive potential.

In this writer’s opinion Tuohy has the most potential of any of the Irish players in the AFL at the moment, when one considers his kicking skills, strength overhead and the speed and running ability which seems to be second nature to all the Irish players.

While it shouldn’t necessarily be expected, it would be a surprise if Tuohy doesn’t have a major role to play in the Carlton backline in 2012 as they eye up a possible tilt at number 17.

Paul Cribbin (Collingwood)

Cribbin is still something of an unknown quantity in AFL terms. He played a number of reserve team games last year to mixed reviews and one gets the feeling that 2012 will be a crucial year in deciding Cribbin’s future as a Collingwood player.

Prospects for 2012

He’ll start the year in the reserves and any potential promotion to the senior team will depend on his performances there however, being left out of the first NAB Cup squad of the season doesn’t augur well.

A brief appearance in the NAB Cup on Saturday – having lined out for the reserves earlier in the day – was encouraging and he must take every available opportunity to impress Nathan Buckley and Co or face the prospect of being the forgotten Irishman behind the returning Clarke and new recruit Caolan Mooney.

Most observers are in agreement that he needs to impose himself more on games and add a Kennelly-esque drive to his game coming off the back flank.

A good year if…

He can get some stand-out performances early in the season in the reserves at Collingwood and at least put himself in the rookie promotion shop window, should any spots open up in the senior squad.

A solid year in the reserves with some noticeable skill and physique development should set him up for a make or break third year on the rookie list in 2013.

Part 2 will cover the remaining four Irish players playing in the AFL this year, including the returning Marty Clarke and the evergreen Setanta O’hAilpin.

Flickr/macrocomp http://www.flickr.com/photos/macrocomp/

After two long weeks, the first round of the NAB Cup has finally finished and footy fans all over have been asking themselves one question: Do we really have to endure another three weeks of this?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not ungrateful for the current matches we’ve been provided with but after a long summer looking forward to some football, the present competition just doesn’t cut it.

1.         THE STARS DON’T PLAY

For many young players, the NAB Cup is an excellent opportunity to gain match experience and generally push for inclusion in the best 22.

However, for the experienced players, the competition merely provides a chance to stretch the muscles before the season proper begins.

Over the past fortnight Nick Dal Santo, Corey Enright, Scott Pendlebury, David Mundy and several other key players have been missing from their respective sides.

More stars have played for a single 40-minute game before being rested for the next match.

For the elite, these games are nothing more than a hit-out, more a chore than anything else.

It’s great the kids get a chance, but ultimately if it appears that the players themselves don’t care about the competition, the fans can hardly be expected to.

2.         THE FORMAT

Two years ago the NAB Cup was played on a weekly elimination format over four weeks.

The last two years have seen radical change in its structure, with the competition split into six pools of three teams, each playing a round robin with the games lasting only two 20-minute halves.

2012 sees teams playing a further two full-length matches in order to determine the sides that will play off in the Grand Final.

It’s unnecessarily convoluted is what I’m trying to say.

With such low interest in the outcome of the pre-season matches, is there really a need for the format to be changed regularly?

All it does is create confusion, which in turn further damages the interest levels in the competition.

3.         THE RULES

For an outsider looking in, the rules for a regular AFL match can be quite confusing.

For an fanatic watching the NAB Cup, the rules are bewildering at best.

The AFL has decided that the NAB Cup is a perfect opportunity to trial rules that most fans vehemently object to.

The major problem with these trials is that most alter the very fundamentals of the game we know and love and most seem very unlikely to ever be included in the real stuff.

With all these rules changing the basic fundamentals of the game, the end product becomes something scarcely recognisable as AFL.

The public want to see the game we’ve grown up watching; not a game which is played under different laws.

4.         THE RESULTS ARE MEANINGLESS

Adding to the public’s general indifference is the fact that there is not much difference between winning the entire competition or being eliminated in the first round.

The pre-season – as it is –  is an unreliable form line heading into the regular season.

Carlton won the pre-season competition in 2005, only to win another four games for the rest of the year; Collingwood lost their opening match in 2010 only to finish up Premiers.

As a result, the matches become irrelevant, providing little entertainment to the dedicated viewers watching from the stands and at home.

If the matches took more importance and had a greater effect on the entire year, more people would watch.

5.          THE STANDARD

Let’s be honest, there is an obvious reason why a lot of the players in the NAB Cup don’t play during the regular season.

Most of them simply aren’t ready for the challenges AFL footy brings, and the quality of the matches deteriorate because of it.

To be fair, the game-time provided can be invaluable in preparing young players for the step up in competition, but the skills being displayed are of an inferior quality, as the most talented players are being rested in preparation for the regular season.

This makes the majority of the matches harder to enjoy, particularly when the fans are aware that the stars would be playing if the competition held any real significance.

6.         THE WEEKS COULD BE BETTER SPENT

Wouldn’t the preseason be better spent if it weren’t one at all?

Instead of the NAB Cup couldn’t we just begin the Home and Away season five weeks earlier and allow everyone to participate in what they really want?

It may be tougher on the players, but the AFL has shown over the last few seasons that it is willing to provide bye rounds in order to create a recovery period for players; an extra week or two could be enough to allow fatigued players to recuperate.

When you also allow for more matches in a season you’re also allowing more teams to play each other twice in the year, and with expansion sides Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney expected to struggle in their first few years of development, playing these teams once or twice can be the difference between making finals and just missing out.

The fixtures, which annually is the cause of a lot of controversy and tension amongst fans, naturally becomes fairer for more clubs.

Some have come in-game, others before the first ball-up has even been contested.

By my count, we have seen 3 ACL tears and 2 isolated MCL tears this pre-season. If you add to this Max Gawn’s ACL rupture in December, that makes 4 ACL tears since Geelong held the cup aloft in October.

That’s an alarming number.

AFL data reveals that for every club in the competition, there are 0.7 ACL ruptures each season. With the addition of GWS, that means we might reasonably expect 13 ACL tears in season 2012. Does that mean that we’re “4 down, 9 to go”? It seems likely.

Between 2001 and 2010, with 16 teams in the competition, there were between 8 and 14 ACL injuries every year. That represents quite a consistent rate and one that has shown no evidence of improving.

While the debates about playing surfaces, bench rotations, interchange size and the controversial LARS surgery have raged, there have been no significant inroads into the rate and recovery of ACL injuries in AFL football.

A ruptured ACL can happen to anyone, from professional athlete to professional journalist. Many people have had experience with this injury, and many more have held strong opinions.

But what is the anterior cruciate ligament? What makes it so important? How does it rupture? How is it diagnosed? How is it fixed? In the next few weeks, we’re going to bring you the definitive guide to the ACL.

Part 1: What is the ACL and why does it break?

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is a surprisingly unnecessary ligament for everyday life. The knee joint is quite an unstable joint and needs all the stabilisation it can get, but very little of this comes from the ACL.

The quadriceps muscles in the front of the thigh are the most important muscles for keeping the knee stable. As some of you may have experienced, after rupturing an ACL these muscles tend to tighten to keep the knee stable.

The ACL seems to be doing very little, until you start running.

The ACL has several functions, the main one being to make the knee joint flex. When the muscles that flex the knee contract, they pull on the thigh bone (femur) and calf bone (tibia).

Without the ACL, this would mean that the thigh would move backwards on the calf. The ACL holds these bones in place and converts this motion into a rolling motion — instead of falling backwards, the knee bends.

Remove the ACL and the knee simply doesn’t bend properly. The quadriceps can stabilise the knee as much as they want, it still won’t work the way it should and bending will always feels unstable.

Without an ACL: the femur falls back when trying to bend the knee

With an ACL (red): the femur rotates on the tibia when bending

The ACL stops backwards movement of the thigh, while its counterpart, the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) stops backwards movement of the calf. But why don’t we see so many PCL injuries? Two reasons come to mind: one, the PCL is stronger, and two, the mechanism of ACL injury is much more common.

So, the ACL is important, not because the knee is unstable and you cannot walk without it, but because the knee joint just doesn’t work the way it’s meant to. This failure for the knee joint to pivot the way it should is not 100% vital for everyday life, but becomes exceedingly apparent when trying to play sport.

Why it is injured comes down to the mechanism, which we will explore in the next instalment.

10- Dale Morris (Western Bulldogs)
Morris has come through the rookie system and become a steady part of the Bulldogs defence, to the point of earning All-Australian honours in 2008. However, this steadiness means that he doesn’t gain much notice in the eyes of the AFL public, as mid-sized defenders generally get passed over. However, Morris’s importance as part of the Bulldogs defence should not be understated, especially with over 200 games under his belt.

Tom Lonergan - Photo Courtesy Peter Moschos

9 – Tom Lonergan (Geelong)
Lonergan’s biggest point of note up until 2011 was his kidney injury, and the comparisons to Sam Newman as a young player losing a kidney. However, now having finally worked his way into Geelong’s backline, he became a key part of their premiership side as he allowed Matthew Scarlett to be released across half-back and create further damaging plays. One to watch in 2012.

8 – Antoni Grover (Fremantle)
Admittedly, your author will confess to not knowing who Grover was until the 2011 season. Yes, I missed a 200-game solid part of the Fremantle defence. I apologise, Dockers fans. But there has never been controversy or massive errors surrounding Grover, which is why he goes unnoticed as a solid contributor in the Fremantle back line. A lot of teams of the early 2000s would have loved a player like Grover, simply because he is hard-working and reliable in defence where so many others were not.

7 – Nathan Jones (Melbourne)
Like so many Melbourne players, Jones seems to be targeted by analysts as an underachiever, particularly after the 2011 season. However, Jones was everything Melbourne was not, with the ‘bruise-free’ tag certainly not applying as he continually competed for and retrieved the hard ball. If his disposal cleans up he will quickly become the most dangerous player in the Melbourne midfield.

6 – Darren Jolly (Collingwood)
It’s very difficult to consider a double-premiership-winning ruckman underrated, but then you look at the AFL landscape. Two ruckmen dominate AFL discussion in Sandilands and Cox, with other names such as Jamar and Goldstein often being thrown in there. However, despite recent injuries Jolly is still one of the best rucks around and must be factored in as a key piece in Collingwood’s 2012 chances.

5 – David Wojcinski (Geelong)
Wojcinski has spent the better part of a decade playing off a half-back flank for the Cats, and has been rewarded with three premiership medallions. Making (almost) 200 games and being a good contributor for that length of time would normally guarantee you a spot in the fond memories of your club’s supporters, but when you’ve been next to names like Ablett, Bartel, Chapman, Ling and Johnson you can be overlooked. Wojack remains a faithful servant of Geelong as he begins his 13th AFL season.

4 – Michael Rischitelli (Gold Coast)
The Suns have two reasons for watching: Gary Ablett and the legion of kids. However, the Suns’ sneaky pickup of the 2010 Brisbane B&F winner proved to be inspired, with Rischitelli being crucial in the Suns’ wins in 2011. Even better, he’s only 26 – and thus may very well be one of the veterans as GC charge towards a flag in later years.

Michael Jamison - Photo courtesy Mister Carlton

3 – Michael Jamison (Carlton)
Much of Carlton gets overlooked because of the Judd factor. However, it must be noted that Jamison was the one rushed back as quickly as possible from his meniscus injury because he was such a crucial part of their backline. If Carlton make the top 4, it’ll be because Jamison is playing.

2 – Domenic Cassisi (Port Adelaide)
Cassisi continues to remain underrated beyond Port despite his tireless work ethic, his absolute commitment to leading the club and his never-say-die attitude. This was epitomised in 2011 with his decision to head to Darwin and play against Melbourne, despite his wife being heavily pregnant and the club having already excused him from duty. A loyal servant of the Power who deserves better coverage.

1 – Josh Kennedy (Sydney)
Having failed to make the grade at Hawthorn, Kennedy has shone since arriving in Sydney. He went from being a part-time starter at Hawthorn, to starting every game since his arrival in Sydney and has now become a crucial part of the Swans’ midfield. Incredibly as well, he’s only 23, but produces at such a rate that he is on track to be a gun for the long term.

Disagree? Post your thoughts on who else is underrated below!

Hawthorn: Jarryd Roughhead – Jarryd Roughead had a difficult 2011. An achilles tendon rupture in round 12 meant that Roughead had to watch his side edge close to, but ultimately fall short of finals success. To compound matters, 2 months after having an operation to fix his achilles, Roughead developed an infection in the repaired tendon. Complications following operative repair of the achilles tendon are actually not that uncommon and risk of infection is considerably higher than, for example, ACL repair (although, the consequences of an infection in an ACL repair are much more disastrous). Despite this, Roughead and Hawthorn will be satisfied that they have elected for the right option with surgery, where the rate of achilles rerupture is in the vicinity of 2.5%, compared with over 10% in those who don’t receive surgery and allow it to heal on its own. As an opposition fan, I enjoy seeing Roughead wield his massive frame with an unusual amount of grace and poise, and hopefully we all don’t have to wait long in 2012 to see him line up in the Hawthorn colours.

The navicular bone in the foot.

Melbourne: Jack Grimes – James Hird, Shane Woewodin, Tom Williams, Matthew Egan, Hayden Ballantyne and Jack Grimes. What these players have in common is that they have all fractured a small bone near the centre of the foot, the navicular bone. Hird went on to captain a premiership side and capture the imaginations of a generation of football fans – and on the other end of the spectrum, Matthew Egan’s career was sadly cruelled by an injury to this little bone. The navicular bone is a sort of in-between bone, helping to bridge the ankle to the foot: it has to deal with a lot of forces pushing it in lots of directions. Symptoms of navicular fractures are not very alarming, often just a bit of pain in a vague area. Add to this that they are not common across all sports and that there is not much written about them, and you start to see why navicular fractures get picked up so late. Navicular fractures can be treated with a moon boot if it isn’t too bad, or surgery may be required. One of the theories concerning the variability in recovery relates to the blood supply, which is generally poor, but also varies from individual to individual. Grimes had surgery on his navicular early in 2011 and looks set to return early in 2012 after a reportedly solid pre-season. Melbourne fans will be keen to see him running through the banner in round 1, with fingers crossed that his navicular won’t give him any troubles. Only time will tell and with this little bone, it hasn’t been enough time to say for certain.

Port Adelaide: Brent Renouf – With injuries to Matthew Lobbe and Brent Renouf, Port’s already lean ruck stocks look positively anorexic. Both Lobbe and Renouf are set to return early, if not round 1, but if there are two rules to go by with injuries they are to never be too certain and to be even less certain with ruckmen. Renouf has been afflicted with the same problem as Jonathon Patton, patella tendinopathy. Port appear to be taking the more conservative approach with Renouf and avoiding that Swedish knee surgery. Generally speaking, patella tendinopathy has a limited course and resolves with time, rest and subsequent strengthening, but when it becomes chronic it is a debilitating condition for a professional athlete to endure. Renouf will be looking to have a big impact at his new club in 2012 and Port will be keen for their experienced recruit to shoulder much of the rucking duties. They will both be hoping that injury does not limit this.

North Melbourne: Daniel Wells – North are a tough team to write about on the injury front, and their fans should be grateful for this. It’s been known for a long time that North have been building a promising and talented midfield and ruck group. The problem they’ve had is with getting all that talent fit and in form all at the same time. At last they have had an almost dream pre-season and we may see the true potential of this squad. But there’s a catch. As I have written about elsewhere, North’s talented midfield group will be without Daniel Wells as he finishes his 6 months on the blood-thinning medication Warfarin. Wells will not be ready to go as soon as he ceases the medication. After he stops the medication, his blood clotting will be tracked and once it reaches a safe level he will be allowed to start contact training. It’s going to take some time for him to train up to match conditions. I will be waiting until around round 5 before I get too excited about watching North’s midfield group at full flight.

Richmond: Jack Riewoldt – Richmond are the team you want to support right now, at least in terms of injuries. The biggest problem they’ve had is booking all of Jack Riewoldt’s surgeries. He has had hip, finger and ankle surgery. The ankle surgery was for a damaged left ankle that appeared to have restricted him in 2011. The hip surgery was essentially to remove loose cartilage and clean up the joint to minimize hip pain – an increasingly popular surgery in AFL post-seasons. All this has meant a restricted, but encouraging pre-season for Riewoldt. Where his ailments appeared to restrict him at times in season 2011, after a pre-season focused on getting his body ready for another long season, I’ll be watching for a dominant Jack Riewoldt as the Tigers make their claim for a finals birth in 2012.

St Kilda: Lenny Hayes – At last we come to an ACL. Lenny Hayes, the engine room of the St Kilda midfield, summarised St Kilda’s disappointing 2011 season with a single torn ACL. Hayes and St Kilda opted for the traditional repair and not the LARS, probably with his post-football life in mind (long-term outcomes for LARS are more of an unknown). His recovery appears to be tracking nicely and if positives can be gleaned, they probably centre on the relatively older age of Hayes. He will likely suffer no chronic consequences of an ACL injury during his playing years, which is a plus for St Kilda fans keen on seeing Hayes run out his career in top form. From all reports coming out of St Kilda, Hayes has recovered well and is vying for round 1 selection.

Sydney Swans: Nick Malceski – Poor Malceski had a horror run in season 2011. It all started with a pre-season ACL tear, for which he had his second LARS surgery to the same knee (right) and his third ACL repair in total. After a swift return in round 9 all was looking good, until recurrent groin pain restricted his output in the second half of 2011. After a full pre-season, Malceski will be looking to put in a strong showing for a young Sydney side that looks fast and attacking. The youthful brigade up forward and through the middle appears to be developing well, with Sydney’s traditionally strong defense the notable key to creating a formidable end-to-end side. Malceski will need to test both his groin and his knee this season to create invaluable run out of defense. Should he have an injury in season 2012, Sydney fans should rest assured that Malceski’s history of recovery is almost suggestive of mythical healing powers, even by LARS standards.

Right leg: typical forces in an ACL tear

West Coast: Mark LeCras – I was going to dedicate this section to the renaissance man of 2011, Andrew Embley, who experienced a subluxation (partial dislocation) of his shoulder two weeks back. I will leave the shoulder subluxation spiel for another time and instead turn my attention to the big injury scare of the moment: Mark LeCras. LeCras, a perennial favourite of Eagles fans and opposition fans alike, came to grief yesterday during training. Vision of the incidence shows LeCras collapsing to ground after pivoting to his left off his right knee, which was in a relatively extended position. Unfortunately for Eagles fans, this is almost the classic description of a non-contact ACL tear. On the flip-side, this is almost the classic description of a lot of other knee injuries, all of which are less serious than an ACL tear. Weighing this up and given the mechanism of injury and the way he was walking afterwards, I would err on the side of an ACL. The Football World awaits the definitive results of LeCras’ scans with eager interest. Alternatives to an ACL injury include meniscus and medial collateral ligament tears. Depending on the grading, these injuries could mean anything from a round 1 return to 8 weeks on the sidelines. Of course, 9 months with an ACL is what we all fear – and I’m 75% sure that is what it is.

Western Bulldogs: Adam Cooney – I would have loved to write about Brian Lake’s battle with injury, but every time I sat down to write about Lake I was plagued by two problems: the number of different injuries Lake has been battling and how many of these injuries remain a mystery. Instead I have decided to shed some light on Adam Cooney’s battle with chronic knee pain, which restricted the Brownlow medallist to just 13 games. Cooney suffered a heavy blow to his knee, fracturing his patella in the 2008 qualifying final against Hawthorn. High-energy impacts on the patella tend to cause horizontal fractures that can easily separate, requiring surgery to hold the two fragments together. There are many ways to fix a patella fracture, unfortunately none of them greatly reduce the risk of developing chondromalacia patella, a painful condition in which the patella scratches against the cartilage it sits on. The only solution is regular surgery to smooth the patella surface or to remove the patella (not an option for any sportsperson). For Adam Cooney, this is a career-long issue, all he can do is learn how to manage it the best he can, which includes slimming down and optimising his recovery.