Brownlow medallist to miss at least a month; Bombers gun recommits; star mid’s horror run

Medallist to miss first month of season

Michael Gleeson

The injury toll continues to rise from the State of Origin match with Brownlow medallist Matt Rowell ruled out for at least the first month of the season with a finger injury.

Rowell had surgery on Thursday in Melbourne to repair his left-hand ring finger which was smashed when he smothered a ball playing for Victoria last Saturday night in Perth.

A club source with knowledge of the injury said Rowell would not play before the Suns’ first bye at the very earliest after scans and then surgery confirmed the injury was far worse than first thought after the match. He had pins and screws inserted in the shattered finger on Thursday.

In the immediate post-match period it was felt Rowell might miss one game at most from the injury which was first thought to be a bad dislocation.

The Suns play Geelong in opening round before playing West Coast then Richmond ahead of the bye. He is no guarantee to return for the post-bye round four match against Melbourne with his return reliant on how well the bones knit.

Given two of the Suns’ first three games are against teams that finished bottom two last season the timing of his absence is not as damaging as it could have been for the Suns. The arrival of Christian Petracca proves even more valuable now given the Rowell injury

The form of Wil Powell, who also played in the State of Origin match and played well on the ball in the first quarter of the practice match against St Kilda on Thursday night, will give the Suns comfort that they have depth in the midfield.

The severity of Rowell’s injury comes after the Giants All-Australian key defender Sam Taylor was also revealed to have suffered a high-grade hamstring injury in the pre-season match. Although there is no official time frame yet on Taylor’s expected return, a senior club source said they feared Taylor’s recovery could take 10 weeks.

Durham recommits to the Dons for the long term

Russell Bennett

Essendon have secured the signature of Sam Durham after a tumultuous off-season in which superstar midfielder Zach Merrett attempted to defect to Hawthorn.

The Bombers announced on Friday that the 24-year-old Durham, who was pick No.9 in the 2021 mid-season draft, had inked a four-year contract extension – tying him to the club until at least the end of 2032.

The cashed-up Essendon have made no secret of their desire to land big-name recruits, such as two-time premiership Lion Zac Bailey, and offered Hawks young gun Josh Weddle a staggering seven-year deal worth up to $10 million before he recommitted to Sam Mitchell’s group.

But even more important is clinching the signatures of their current core players. The explosive, hard-nosed Durham has played 91 games since his 2021 debut and has established himself as one of the first picked in Brad Scott’s side.

In announcing the contract extension of the fan favourite, Essendon list boss Matt Rosa said Durham’s loyalty was key to club’s list build.

“Sam is an icon for our younger players and a massive part of our future,” Rosa said.

“His rise from a mid-season draftee to one of the competition’s elite emerging midfielders is a credit to his ruthless pursuit of improvement.

“He plays with an intensity that inspires his teammates and excites our fans. He epitomises the type of person we want at Essendon. To have a player of his calibre reject the lures of free agency to commit for a further four years, it shows our players truly believe in the path we are on.”

Durham said Essendon is “exactly where I want to be”.

“I have great faith in this list and in Brad [Scott] and the coaches to take us where we need to go,” he said.

“There’s a real sense of confidence in the program; we’re working hard every day to get better, and I’m just excited to be a part of it.”

Durham finished in the top three of Essendon’s best and fairest in 2024 and 2025.

JHF’s horror pre-season continues

Steve Larkin, AAP

Port Adelaide gun Jason Horne-Francis’ troubled pre-season has continued, taken from the field in a trial match because of a foot issue.

Horne-Francis, who had foot surgery last November, was absent during the second half of Friday’s trial against Adelaide.

The Power say the star on-baller reported “minor awareness” in a foot and was rested.

The dynamic 22-year-old, who fractured a foot in round 18 last season and had a plate removed in November, only rejoined full pre-season training in recent weeks.

Horne-Francis, the AFL’s No.1 draft pick 2021, also missed Port’s internal trial last week after copping a knock to a shoulder at training.

His fresh concern came after GWS’ woes worsened with two players (Brent Daniels and Cody Angove) suffering hamstring injuries in a trial game against Collingwood.

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