Star midfielder Dustin Martin is in doubt for Richmond's Round 2 clash against GWS this weekend.
The 2017 Brownlow Medallist, who missed the back-end of the 2021 season with a serious kidney issue, was absent from the Tigers' training session on Thursday due to "personal reasons".
Speaking to media at Punt Road, senior coach Damian Hardwick said he was "unsure" if 'Dusty' would be available for the must-win clash and that his health is the club's number one priority.
Dustin Martin currently absent from training for personal reasons. No certainty to play against GWS on Sunday as the club continues to show support for their star man @zerohanger
— Mitchell Keating (@MitchKeat) March 23, 2022
"He (Martin) won't train today, he's just taking some personal time at the moment," Hardwick said.
"He's dealing with a couple of personal issues and whether he's available to play this week, we're unsure at this stage.
"We won't close the door but we just want to make sure that Dustin's okay.
"You know, number one priority is we are a football club and it's important to win games, but the health and well-being of our players is our number one priority.
"So at this stage, we'll give him his time - he's so important to the fabric of our footy club, we just want to make sure he's okay and hopefully he's getting what he needs."
Richmond face GWS at the MCG on Sunday as both clubs look to avoid an 0-2 start to the season. The first bounce will be at 3.20 pm (AEDT).
