St Kildaโs marquee recruit Dan Hannebery wonโt make any contribution to his new club on-field for the first four rounds of the 2019 season, according to SENโs Sam McClure.
Since crossing to the Saints on a mega five-year deal, the ex-Swan has experienced hamstring tightness throughout the pre-season and subsequently didnโt feature at all in St Kildaโs JLT Community Series.
โHe was training away from the main group; heโs been struggling with that hamstring,โ McClure told SENโs Whateley.
โItโs become a bit of a calf issue, as well.
โWhen you do all the maths, I would say itโs more likely that weโd be seeing Dan Hannebery, AFL-wise, all things going well, (from) round five onwards.
โItโs not a great result, they have signed him on a long-term deal.โ
St Kilda head coach Alan Richardson spoke to the media on Tuesday and addressed the midfielderโs health concerns.
โHeโs had a frustrating period, Dan,โ Richardson said.
โWhenever we up the load and the intensity as close as we can get it on the training track to game day, heโs not quite getting there.
โThat could take a while.โ
Hannebery is joined on a growing Saints injury list by another prize recruit Jake Carlisle (back, majority of the season), Dylan Roberton (heart, season), Billy Longer (hamstring, 1-2 weeks), Paddy McCartin (concussion, TBC), as well as young guns Jack Bytel (back, season), Max King (knee, 6-12 weeks) and Oscar Claravino (ankle, 4-6 weeks).
In some relief for the club, Jack Steven has declared he is aiming for a round one return after taking leave from the club to battle mental health issues.
On a positive note for the Saints, young gun Jack Billings has been elevated to the club's leadership group, as a replacement for Dylan Roberton.
The 23-year-old rounds out the five-man leadership group for the Saints.
The Saints open their 2019 campaign against Gold Coast at Marvel Stadium on Sunday afternoon.