Lloyd gone

[Red Bear]

Injury shock for Lloyd
1:04:46 PM Sat 22 April, 2006
Paul Gough
Sportal for afl.com.au
Essendon skipper Matthew Lloyd will miss the rest of the 2006 home-and-away season after scans on Saturday revealed his injured hamstring was far worse than first thought.

Lloyd has ripped his hamstring tendon off the bone and after the Bombers initially hoped he would miss only five matches, it appears now that unless Essendon can make the finals the champion spearhead won't be seen in action again this year.

It is a devastating blow for the three-time Coleman Medallist coming just as he had achieved his long-term ambition of captaining Essendon.

The Bombers now face the huge problem of not only replacing their top goal-kicker but also their on-field leader with Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy having already been criticised for appointing former skipper James Hird as captain for the Anzac Day clash against Collingwood on Tuesday given Hird had only just resigned from the captaincy in favour of Lloyd at the end of last year.

Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy admitted on Saturday the loss of Lloyd was a devastating blow for the club.

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"Very much so, I really feel sad for him," Sheedy said on Melbourne radio station 3AW.

Sheedy said he had yet to decide on who will captain the club for the rest of the year saying Hird had only been appointed for Anzac Day.

And he hit back at criticism that he should have allowed a younger player to lead the club with other contenders including Jason Johnson, Mark Johnson and David Hille.

"Matthew Lloyd will be captain for the next amount of years but it (his injury) presents a situation now where we can sit down and have a look at an area (leadership) where we can plan ahead.

"But we only found out an hour ago about Matthew Lloyd so I am not making any comments about leadership at the present time."

Sheedy said there was no doubt Hird was the best person to lead the team in the traditional Anzac Day clash against Collingwood - a fixture he has personally dominated for much of the past decade.

"He (Hird) is only captain for the day but why wouldn’t you give it to him on that day, it would be disrespectful to him if you didn't."

The Bombers confirmed that Lloyd will undergo surgery on Monday for what is the most serious injury of his glittering career to date.

Since establishing himself as a permanent member of the senior side in 1997 - after making his debut in 1995 - Lloyd has played at least 20 games a season in every year since expect for 2002.

That year saw him play just 16 games after he missed seven games in the middle of the season with a broken finger.

Last year he also missed the first two games of the season with a broken arm and then struggled to recapture his best form in kicking only 59 goals in 20 games as the Bombers missed the finals for the first time since 1997.

Lloyd, who turned 28 last week, has been the Bombers' leading goal-kicker in each of the past nine years and won the Coleman Medal as the AFL's top goal-kicker for the season in 2000, 2001 and 2003 - topping the century of goals in a season both in 2000 and 2001.

http://afl.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=259794

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Oh for f**ks sake. So much for less pressure on Hird this year. essendon need to step up now

 

[lockyno1]

Good chance for some yound forwards to make their mark.

 

[Twizzle]

well there is definately less pressure on him now

 

[roosters06]

Its not absolutely certain he'll miss the entire year. Its been said that it is a 4-6 month rehab program. So there is an outside chance he'll be back sooner. Unlikely, but still - a chance all the same.

 

[Macca_]

Well that's some stuffed up sh*t right there... Damn it.

As mentioned though, a good chance for some yuong forwards to step up to the plate. In most fans eyes, we're still in the process of rebuilding a new squad and anything achieved this season would be a good bonus (making the finals).

Now... Well a few young guys get their chance to 'fill' the role left be Matt.

Can only be a good thing if you look at season 2007....

 

[Twizzle]

well, these guys are also syaing its a year


Lloyd sidelined for the year
By Jon Ralph
April 23, 2006

ESSENDON'S season plunged into disaster yesterday when captain and star full forward Matthew Lloyd was ruled out for the season after tearing the tendon from his left hamstring.

Lloyd will have the tendon reattached by leading orthopaedic surgeon Julian Feler tomorrow after more scans yesterday revealed the extent of the damage to his kicking leg.

Lloyd, appointed captain this year, had hoped the injury sustained last Sunday might have caused him to miss only a month, but Essendon confirmed his season was over.

In a day of developments:

# Former Carlton fullback Stephen Silvagni, who also ruptured his hamstring tendon, warned the injury was career-threatening.

# Bombers coach Kevin Sheedy guaranteed Lloyd would be captain of Essendon from 2007.

# Essendon said it would not even consider an ongoing replacement for Lloyd until later in the week.

# Sports medico Peter Larkins said a complete recovery from such a severe injury was up to 12 months, with the capacity for athletes to re-injure the tendon.

# St Kilda assistant coach Jason Cripps, who tore his hamstring tendon twice, never recovered his pace or kicking penetration after missing three years with the injury.

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Lloyd damaged the hamstring during a long lead in the third quarter of Essendon's loss to the Western Bulldogs, with Brian Harris tumbling on top of him as he fell to the ground.

He had been hopeful the injury was only a bad tear and had spent time in the hyperbaric chamber this week, but medical staff ordered more scans in the past few days.

Lloyd, 28, had been in sparkling form with eight goals in Round 1 against Sydney, but will face the greatest challenge of his career as he attempts to shrug off two years of constant injury.

The injury is rare in footballers, but has hampered the careers of Silvagni and Cripps.

Sheedy said he suffered the same injury while playing for Richmond during its 1969 premiership.

"I was out for a year and that was it," Sheedy said.

Sheedy was unwavering of his support for Lloyd as captain.

"Matthew Lloyd will be captain for X amount of years, but it presents the situation for us now to sit back and have a look at the areas where we can plan ahead," Sheedy said. "The doctors felt it would probably be the year. If we get him back it would be into a possible finals series."

Silvagni, who took seven months to recover from the injury, said no one should underestimate its seriousness.

"It is a fair process to get back to playing AFL footy. I was coming out of contract at that stage and the club was very reluctant to re-sign me," he told Triple M.

Cripps has been the AFL player most affected after missing three years with two separate tendon ruptures of his right kicking leg. "I was at the game and I thought it might be pretty serious," he said.

"I did mine against Essendon for the first time in Round 2, 1998. Then I did it again in the pre-season in February 1999. It is obviously pretty disappointing, but I am sure with the right rehab he can come back.

"You have to be very patient. I found the tendon takes a long time to heal and you can't push it. I pushed it hard early and then I did it the second time so it is something you have to be very cautious and patient with.

"The second time I was on crutches for four months. The biggest thing I struggled with was kicking because it was my kicking leg. There is no doubt there were some mental scars with the kicking because that is how I did it the second time."

Larkins said anything less than a 10-12 month recovery was unrealistic.

"I think you would regard a full recovery as a year," Larkins said.

"In terms of the repair process and the tendon reattachment, that is a four to six month process for it to be fully attached, then you need to do the strengthening and kicking and balance and range of motion.

"That is another four to six month process to make sure he does feel he is over it."

Sunday Herald Sun

 

[roosters06]

well, these guys are also syaing its a year

they are. but since when has the H.S been reliable?

Remember, this is the same Larkins that said Riewoldt would miss an entire season after the incident in Round 1 last year against the Lions.

I'll believe whats being said around the club more than a press beatup. Its more than likely that he'll miss the season, but according to the club, its a 4-6 month recovery period. My brother actually works for the club - and that is the word around there. Not sure if its entirely true - but meh