St Kilda's Rowan Marshall injures pelvis, West Coast's Elliot Yeo injured

St Kilda's key ruckman, Rowan Marshall, is likely to miss the first round and potentially longer due to a pelvic stress fracture, further compounding the team's injury woes. Marshall's injury has undoubtedly cast a shadow over the team and added uncertainty to the upcoming season.

In addition to Marshall, potential draftee Mattaes Phillipou (femur stress fracture) and defender Dougal Howard (dislocated shoulder) are also highly likely to miss the Saints' season opener against Adelaide on March 16. This is a significant blow for coach Ross Lyon's Saints, who are aiming to return to the finals after finishing 12th last year.

St Kilda will anxiously await the scan results for 29-year-old Marshall, one of the club's most influential players. Football manager David Misson stated, "Rowan will have a CT scan tomorrow to assess the extent of his pelvic stress fracture. He has been doing modified training since last week to help manage the injury, but after tomorrow's scan, we will have a clearer understanding of his recovery." He added, "We are hopeful Rowan will be available for round one or soon after."

The Saints recently signed Harry Boyd from the South Australian National Football League to provide additional ruck depth, and he may now be called upon as early as round one. Meanwhile, former top-10 draft pick Phillipou's stress fracture to his right femur is expected to sideline him for 10 to 14 weeks. Phillipou was expected to have a breakout season, but it now appears he will be unavailable until at least round six, possibly even round ten in early May. Misson explained, "Mattaes felt some soreness on Friday, so we have been monitoring his recovery over the weekend. With the soreness still present on Monday, we sent him for a scan which confirmed the diagnosis."

Misson continued, "He will be on crutches for the next few weeks, and then we will be looking at 10 to 12 weeks of rehab and recovery. This is undoubtedly a tough blow, but Mattaes' maturity and responsibility are far beyond his years, and we are confident he will approach this period with the professionalism we expect." Defender Howard will also undergo scans to determine the severity of a shoulder injury he sustained in a marking contest during training on Monday. Misson stated, "The recovery time for this type of injury can range from days to weeks, so we won't speculate until we have a definitive result."

Furthermore, Liam Henry (ACL) is nearing a return to full training, while rookies Alix Tauru (back) and utility Hunter Clark (groin) are also stepping up their training for the new season. West Coast Eagles premiership player Elliot Yeo will miss the start of the season. Yeo sustained an injury during a tackle in training on Friday, with West Coast announcing on Monday that the midfielder had injured the medial collateral ligament in his right knee and also suffered ligament damage to his right ankle. West Coast’s football general manager Gavin Bell said, "There are always risks involved when increasing training intensity in preparation for the season, and unfortunately Elliot has sustained injuries to both his right knee and ankle. We are developing his rehabilitation plan and return-to-play timeline. At this stage, we are hopeful he will be available early in the season."