Collingwood have confirmed ruckman Brodie Grundy won't return from injury for the remainder of this season.
Grundy hasn't featured in Craig McRae's side since Round 6 due to a knee injury, with the two-time Copeland Trophy winner only making his return in recent weeks through the VFL.
In his comeback stint with the club's reserves, Grundy suffered an ankle injury that placed a cloud over his chances for the coming rounds, with the Magpies confirming on Monday evening that their ruck star would miss the remainder of the season.
โBrodie took part in the Clubโs VFL game against the Southport Sharks just over a week ago and he pulled up sore from that match. He then participated in a training session early last week and was still experiencing soreness, so he was sent for scans which revealed a stress fracture in his left ankle,โ Magpies football boss Graham Wright revealed.
โThe nature of the ankle injury is not long-term so Brodie will make a full recovery but after consulting with multiple specialists to assess all options available, it was determined arthroscopic surgery would be the best course of action.
โThe pleasing thing for Brodie is that his knee has held up well โ this is a separate injury โ and unfortunatelyย with only a couple of weeks left of the home-and-away season, he will be unable to take further part in matches in 2022.
โBrodie will be up and running at the start of pre-season training but for the time being his health remains the priority.โ
The setback could spell the end for Grundy's tenure at Collingwood despite his contract currently tying him to Olympic Park until the end of 2027.
Reports in recent weeks have suggested Grundy could be placed on offer to rival sides, with the club having flourished in his absence with Darcy Cameron emerging as a breakout tall under McRae.
Grundy has played 177 games in black and white since making his debut in 2013, claiming two ALl-Australian selections.
