BILLY Stretch could miss the remainder of the season, after suffering a stress fracture in his small toe.
Elite performance manager Dave Mission said the 21-year-old would be out indefinitely, with scans confirming the extent of the niggle.
“He had a run on Monday as part of our recovery and just felt sore in his little toe,” Misson told Melbourne Media.
“Bill will be out for a while – it may even be the season, but we’ll keep putting him through the rehab process.
“It’s really bad luck for Billy.”
Stretch played just his second game of the home-and-away season in Melbourne’s 54-point win over Fremantle on Saturday night, finishing with 24 disposals, four tackles and two behinds.
Meanwhile, Joel Smith, who came off several times despite playing out the Top End clash, has pulled up well from a hip injury.
But Misson said the defender remains a test to take on the Western Bulldogs.
“He did half the session today and finished pretty well,” he said.
“He’s got a few more things to tick off on Friday but we’re quite hopeful.”
Declan Keilty is likely to be available for the Casey Demons this week, despite sitting out half of the game with a head knock, while Jayden Hunt (ankle) and Dion Johnstone (quad) are hoping for a return following the VFL bye.
Corey Maynard (hip) and Jake Lever (knee) continue to progress in the gym, with Misson saying the pair are hoping to start running again in the next month.
Misson’s injury list assessments
Billy Stretch (toe) – indefinite
“He had a run on Monday as part of our recovery and just felt sore in his little toe. We followed up with a scan and unfortunately, it’s revealed a stress fracture in that small toe. Bill will be out for a while – it may even be the season, but we’ll keep putting him through the rehab process. It’s really bad lucky for Billy.”
Joel Smith (hip) – test
“Joel came off a couple of times throughout the game but finished the game. He has pulled up quite well. He did half the session today and finished pretty well. He’s got a few more things to tick off on Friday but we’re quite hopeful.”
Dion Johnstone (quad) – one week
“Unfortunately, Dion had a bit of a tight quad in the middle of training last week. He sat out the game on the weekend. He’ll probably miss this week but we’re hopeful he’ll be back after the VFL bye. “
Declan Keilty (concussion) – test
“Declan had a head knock in the second quarter down at Casey and went off for the rest of the game. From a concussion point of view, he’s ticked most of the boxes this week. We’ll have to do a little bit more at the back end of the week, but again we’re hopeful that he’s going to get up.”
Jayden Hunt (ankle) – test
“He’s going really well. He’s starting some agility and doing some fast run-throughs. We’re thinking again that he’s another one who will come back after the VFL bye.”
Corey Maynard (hip) and Jake Lever (knee) – season
“Corey’s starting to get into some good strength work, as is Jake Lever. They are starting to hit the gym pretty solidly and working towards starting to run again in about a month’s time.”
