North Melbourne spearhead forward Nick Larkey has officially had his 2025 season cut short, senior coach Alastair Clarkson confirmed on Friday.
Larkey reaggravated his PCL injury during Sunday's nine-point loss to St Kilda, landing awkwardly after a marking contest.
“He'll miss the rest of the season, unfortunately,” Clarkson said.
"PCLs are difficult injuries to manage. When you crunch your knee into the ground like he did in that marking contest, there was only going to be damage.
"We've just got to look after that now and put him in a brace, and he'll get himself right for next year."
Clarkson levelled frustrations at the St Kilda defenders manning Larkey in the contest following Sunday's game, but has since retreated on his words, believing the injury was incidental and occurred within a football act. He also expressed his disappointment with how he personally managed Larkey's fragile situation.
"It got the better of me in the post-match [press conference], but on reflection, I looked at the incident and did the St Kilda defenders do anything that our defenders wouldn't have done in terms of trying to force the contest? Probably not, so I let it go," Clarkson told media on Friday.
"I reflected afterwards, I was so disappointed at the time... for him and for us, knowing full well that as soon as he hobbled and couldn't take his kick, I knew what had happened.
"And I'm sort of disappointed in myself a little bit that I didn't let him know before the game that leading at flat-out pace with defenders chasing was going to put him at the most risk.
"We deal with these sorts of things all the time, in terms of players who have to combat injury and put themselves at risk in-game. Even though you've got to play the game, I don't think he necessarily had to run flat out, full on. Someone else could have led into that space. He could have let Cam Zurhaar lead into that space.
"That's where the disappointment [lies]. Afterwards, you're filled with so much emotion that one of your leading players has just returned from a PCL injury and now he's going to miss the rest of the year."
If there's any silver lining from this injury, however, it's that the Kangaroos are able to blood two fresh faces into their senior list this weekend, with 2024 mid-season draft selection Geordie Payne and 2025 mid-season draft pick Cooper Trembath set to debut.
Payne has dominated at VFL level at the perfect time, with the 19-year-old forward kicking 10 goals across his last two matches, including a six-goal haul against Sandringham last week. It's a run of form he'll be hoping to capitalise on at the AFL level as Larkey's immediate replacement inside 50.
Trembath was listed on North Melbourne's VFL side until the mid-season draft, where the club elevated him to the AFL playing list.
The swingman has a knack for finding the goals, booting three against Geelong's VFL side two weeks ago before adding another two to his tally against Sandringham.
His aerial threat also presents as a boost for the Kangaroos AFL side, whether that's in defence or up forward, registering at least five marks in all but one VFL game this season.
The pair will make their AFL debuts against GWS this Sunday in Canberra.
