Melbourne premiership player Trent Rivers will be watched with intrigue as coach Steven King revealed he has been "dealing with something physically", which is contributing to his poor form of late and ultimately his surprise omission against Carlton.
Rivers was one of two changes King made ahead of the Blues clash, noting that the defensive structure needed reshaping.
"For us, team balance," King said.
"Riv hasn't been at his best, which he knows. He's been searching for his best form.
"He's been dealing with something physically, which I won't go into here. I want him to reset and get back to his best.
"That's something we'll work through this week. I know it's the old cliche, 'team balance', but we were a bit lopsided with a couple extra defenders in the team.
"We needed some reinforcement around the footy. He'll bounce back. We'll make sure we'll get in the trenches throughout the week and make a plan for him to come back and get back to his best."
Rivers will come back into the selection frame following the calf injury to speedster Changkuoth Jiath.
"Just a calf," King said.
"We'll see how bad it is. Obviously with a scan, these things can turn pretty quick.
"It was bad enough for him not to come on. He's a high-speed athlete, so we need to make sure he's okay."
