Jack Riewoldt in doubt for finals with bone bruising on his knee
Bruce Matthews •
Herald Sun •
August 22, 2013 9:55AM
RICHMOND goalkicking ace Jack Riewoldt may struggle to play again this season.
Riewoldt is expected to be left at home when the Tigers play Greater Western Sydney in Sydney on Sunday.
And the rate of recovery from bone bruising in his right knee will determine if he is ready for the last home-and-away round against Essendon ... and the first week of the finals.
While Riewoldt escaped structural damage after hyperextending the knee in a marking contest in the last quarter against Carlton on Saturday, he is battling soreness and swelling.
A leading sports doctor said this week: "Riewoldt is likely to have significant bone bruising and swelling and soreness, particularly at the back of his knee, and would benefit from time off this week."
Carlton forward Jarrad Waite took five weeks to recover from bone bruising in a knee.
Waite also avoided ligament and cartilage damage during the Blues' loss to Collingwood in Round 15. But he had to sit out the next four rounds and did not return until two weeks ago.
The Tigers must try to regroup from Riewoldt's injury and what midfielder Brett Deledio this week described as "a good clip behind the ears" in their shock loss to the Blues.
"Our first quarter against Carlton was probably some of the best footy I've seen us play. But we certainly have taken our foot off the pedal," Deledio told the Richmond website.
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"Some of our defensive stuff that we put up on the weekend was really poor and quite embarrassing.
"The coach and coaching staff have pointed that out to us ... you don't like seeing that sort of stuff, no one really does.
"But it was a good clip behind the ears coming into finals, to really make sure that we're playing our best footy going in there and not just scraping through."
How ruckman Matthew Kreuzer (calf) and lively forward Jeff Garlett (buttock) pull up today after yesterday's main training session will decide whether they return for Carlton's must-win game against Essendon on Saturday night.
And there's still hope Chris Judd (strained medial ligament) may play again despite the Blues initially ruling him out for the season.
"If we play finals, he's some chance of coming back," Blues football operations manager Andrew McKay said. "Even if we do get in the finals, his availability is going to depend on how quickly he recovers once he's out of the brace."
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