Superstar Cat Patrick Dangerfield, who suffered internal injuries and was hospitalised following Geelong's defeat at the hands of Port Adelaide on Thursday night at Adelaide Oval, has been ruled out of the Cats' Round 15 clash with Melbourne, while he may also face a nervous wait with the MRO after a potentially dangerous tackle could be cited.
Dangerfield suffered a partially collapsed lung and a cracked rib in the second quarter after coming up second-best in a marking contest against Power defender Dan Houston, and was submitted to hospital for further assessment amid internal damage concerns.
Geelong GM of Football Simon Lloyd has since ruled Dangerfield out of the club's upcoming bout with the Demons next Thursday.
Geelong footy boss Simon Lloyd says Patrick Dangerfield wonโt face Melbourne on Thursday night with those internal injuries, but has praised the captainโs courage, as the Cats work through recovery plans.
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The Cats will continue to monitor Dangerfield, who remained in Adelaide on Thursday night and will return to Melbourne on Friday via car.
A return-to-play timeline for 'Danger' has not yet been determined.
Health Update ๐ฃ Danger has suffered a partially collapsed lung and cracked rib following a marking contest during the second quarter of Thursday night's match.
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Speaking post-game, Geelong coach Chris Scott claimed Dangerfield's lack of match influence was evident following the incident, and couldn't speculate at the time about what the superstar's precise ailment was.
"He got that knock and he just progressively seized up more and more to the point where he's a warrior, but it looked to us like he couldn't move," Scott said.
"He said that he wanted to keep trying, but it was clear he just couldn't have an impact on the game from pretty early in the second quarter.
"Our medical staff are brilliant and they will be providing the best care possible.
"I could say that it's a back spasm or something like that, but the honest answer is 'I don't know'."
Meantime, Dangerfield, who only just returned after recovering from a low-grade hamstring injury, could be looked at by the MRO after he laid a tackle on Port Adelaide midfielder Connor Rozee that appeared to promote a slinging action.
Any worries for Patrick Dangerfield after this slinging tackle?
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While Dangerfield let go of his grip on Rozee towards the back end of the tackle, it is an incident that was flagged post-game as one Michael Christian may examine closely.
Dangerfield's Cats are set to match up with the in-form Demons next weekend.