Three-time AFLW premiership player and physio Libby Birch has cast doubt on Marcus Bontempelli’s injury recovery timeline and raised questions over the Western Bulldogs’ strength and conditioning team after several players sustained injuries since the end of last season.
“As a physio, looking at their off-season, I’ve analysed their injury trends, and it seems to me like they’ve got a massive soft-tissue injury trend happening there,” Birch said on The Age’s Real Footy Podcast.
Marcus Bontempelli left the field early in a pre-season clash with Hawthorn. Scans revealed a “complex” calf injury.Credit: Getty Images
“Obviously, their loads have been too high for a substantial amount of time, and we’re just seeing this bulk of soft-tissue injuries. So their high-performance team will be under a lot of pressure.”
Injured Bulldogs include Aaron Naughton, who injured his calf shortly before Christmas, defender Liam Jones, who suffered a significant hamstring strain in February, and midfielder Adam Treloar, who was sidelined after a late-January calf strain. Defender Jason Johannisen will also miss several weeks of the season after undergoing surgery for a hamstring strain.
Captain Marcus Bontempelli was ruled out for at least six weeks when he sustained a calf injury in Thursday’s practice match against Hawthorn.
Birch said she was particularly worried about Bontempelli’s injury, which was described as a “complex” calf strain, believing it could involve the skipper’s plantaris muscle as well as his tendon.
“That is a concern for me. They’ve said six weeks, but I think we’re looking more like eight for Bontempelli.”
