Geelong coach Chris Scott has strongly backed young star Daniel Menzel to return to the AFL a better player after another cruel injury setback.
The 20-year-old was making his comeback from a right knee reconstruction in Saturday’s VFL match against North Ballarat at Simonds Stadium when he suffered a serious injury to the left knee.
Menzel is likely to need a second reconstruction, putting him out of action for nine more months.
He suffered the first injury in last year’s qualifying final win over Hawthorn, robbing him of an AFL premiership in his second season.
“We’re devastated – we don’t know for sure yet, but we’re pretty confident that the news isn’t going to be positive,” Scott said.
“We’ve all – Dan and the club – got to move on very quickly.
“It’s a major setback – it’s extremely disappointing.
“He will come back a better player – we’re very confident of that.
“The way he attacked his rehab this time suggests he’ll approach it the same way and he’ll come back a more complete athlete than he is today.”
Menzel has played 20 games and the Cats rave about his talent.
Former Geelong great Cameron Mooney said on SEN radio that if Menzel can have an extended run of games in the AFL, he is a potential Brownlow Medallist.
Scott noted Menzel “absolutely dominated” in the VFL match before the injury.
Menzel signed a new contract with the Cats earlier this month.
“We rate him extremely highly as a player and extremely highly as a person,” Scott said.
“He was even in good enough spirits to joke that it was lucky he got pen to paper and signed that contract.
“But I can guarantee you, if he hadn’t signed the contract, we’d still have it in front of him tonight.”
It was a bad VFL match for the Cats, with Allen Christensen taken to hospital for tests after he was concussed.
Christensen was resuming from a calf muscle injury and Scott said they were unsure how badly he was hurt.
“We’d have to think he’s in some doubt for next week,” Scott said.
Scott admitted news of Menzel’s injury might have helped explain the AFL team’s slow start against Greater Western Sydney, soon after the VFL game.
“It would be naive to think those things don’t have any impact at all,” Scott said.
