Pearce to miss third straight clash with shin injury

Fremantle captain Alex Pearce has been ruled out of Thursday night's clash with Essendon at Optus Stadium.
Pearce will miss a third straight match with a stress-related shin injury.
'It's going to be a bit too tight to get him up for this week, he hasn't quite progressed the way he wanted to,' Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir said before training yesterday.
'So we will have to give him a little bit longer. He's not in drills, and he needed to be in drills by today. So he hasn't quite got there.
'He's moving around, he probably just hasn't taken that next step yet.'
The Dockers coach said there was not yet a timeline on his return.
'It will be KPI driven. We are managing him through that. We can't really put a time frame on it. We're hoping for next week.' Alex Pearce hasn't played in round 11. Credit: Paul Kane / Getty Images
Pearce's absence means he will miss the three matches he was originally banned for following a collision with Port Adelaide's Darcy Byrne-Jones in round 11, before the Dockers successfully overturned it at the AFL Tribunal.
Longmuir said the general health of the squad was good heading into a short, five-day turnaround between Saturday night's narrow win over North Melbourne in the wet and Thursday night's clash with Essendon at Optus Stadium.
'A few bumps and bruises. It was obviously a pretty contested game in the wet, but the players are in good spirits, and we've moved on and are ready to get into Essendon,' he said.
Essendon will unleash an 11th debutant of 2025 against the Dockers, with ruckman Vigo Visentini making the trip to Perth for his first AFL game.
Visentini has averaged 17.6 disposals, 31 hitouts and 3.3 clearances in the VFL and gets his chance through the absence of regular ruckmen Sam Draper and Nick Bryan who both have long-term injuries.
Veteran Todd Goldstein had been employed as ruck coach but stepped in to fill the void across eight games but will be rested for the interstate trip.
Peter Wright and Lachie Blakiston, who made his debut last weekend, will help Visentini with the ruck load.
Longmuir said the selectors would heavily weigh up whether to play their ruck pair Luke Jackson and Sean Darcy this weekend off the five-day break.
Both trained on Tuesday and showed no ill effects from the clash with the Roos.
'We'll consider that later, see how Sean goes at training in particular, but both are talking as though they've pulled up really well,' Longmuir said. Sean Darcy at Fremantle training. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper / The West Australian
'It's possibly an opportunity. We don't want to underestimate the young fellow (Visentini). He's been in really good form in the VFL. His ruck craft, from what I've seen in VFL games, looks really strong and he works hard around the ground.
'So we definitely don't want to underestimate him, but he hasn't got the experience of Goldstein either. So maybe there's an opportunity there.'
Liam Reidy is coming off a strong game for Peel Thunder so also remains an option, should Fremantle rest either Jackson or Darcy.

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Fremantle Dockers veterans Michael Walters and Jaeger O'Meara pass test in footy return for Peel Thunder

West Australian

43 minutes ago

West Australian

Fremantle Dockers veterans Michael Walters and Jaeger O'Meara pass test in footy return for Peel Thunder

Fremantle veteran Michael Walters got through his first WAFL appearance of the season unscathed as midfielder Jaeger O'Meara pushed for an instant recall to the AFL side. Walters has been sidelined since the start of the year with a persistent knee injury but showed no ill-affects as he made a rare appearance for Peel Thunder in their 35-point defeat to South Fremantle in Mandurah on Saturday. The 34-year-old was quiet compared to his lofty standards, collecting three disposals and five tackles under the watchful eye of Dockers coach Justin Longmuir and the coaching staff who would've been pleased to see the 2019 All-Australian run out a game. On limited minutes, Walters was not favoured by the heavy conditions down in Mandurah, which made scoring difficult for much of the game. Starting at half-forward, the veteran got into the game early as the Thunder kicked into a strong breeze. It was evident that Walters' leadership was having an impact, with the forward spending a lot of time directing teammates and setting up their structures around the ground. Walters picked up the speed of the game better in the second half, pushing up to the contest and then trying to expose South Fremantle defender Toby McQuilkin by working hard back to attack. The superstar spent time with fans after the match taking pictures and signing autographs despite the rain. O'Meara came back to where it all began in his first WAFL appearance for 5041 days, having last played in the state league as a 17-year-old for Perth. The Dockers midfielder is coming back from a hamstring and foot injury he sustained in the round six loss to Melbourne but didn't look like he skipped a beat. O'Meara was one of the best midfielders for the Thunder, finishing with 25 disposals, five tackles and team-high seven clearances in a strong display. The former Gold Coast and Hawthorn star made his debut in Mandurah in round 22 of 2011 where he caught the attention with four goals from 15 disposals. Fremantle midfielder Will Brodie is set for a stint on the sidelines after he sustained a concussion in the opening minutes of the contest. Defender Brandon Walker – who hasn't played since the Dockers' round two defeat to Sydney – was solid in defence, finishing with 10 touches and five tackles. Donning the long sleeves and No.88, Walker's defensive pressure was strong and there was some contests which would've seriously tested the strength of the repaired shoulder. Third-year defender High Davies was one of Peel's best, holding Bernie Naylor Medal leader Trey Ruscoe goalless in an excellent effort as he looks to add to the two games he played for Fremantle last year. Draftee Charlie Nicholls kicked consecutive goals for the second consecutive week in a strong performance early in his career.