Hawthorn skipper Luke Hodge has emerged unscathed from an impressive reserves hitout, prompting coach Alastair Clarkson to consider his immediate return to AFL action against Essendon on Friday night.
Hodge had 16 touches and a goal in his comeback from a knee injury which has sidelined him for more than three months in the Box Hill Hawks’ 116-point win over Collingwood in the second-tier VFL.
Clarkson admits he is considering all options with Hodge, who has already had one setback in his return from the persistent knee problem.
“He could play next week against Essendon, he could sub next week against Essendon or he could play in the VFL,” Clarkson said.
“We’ll assess that Monday or Tuesday, look at the GPS, assess how much running he did and also look at the opposition.
“If he’s underdone, we may very well make the call to give some more match conditioning at VFL level.
“He’s got through the game really well … from all the reports, he’s come through unscathed.”
Not so a coaches’ box wall at the MCG, which Clarkson hammered with his hand and broke just before quarter-time when his defender Matt Suckling gifted Collingwood a late goal from a kick-in.
The Hawks coach could see the funny side of the incident after his side recovered to post a 47-point win over Collingwood on Saturday.
“It just highlights the frustration and emotion of coaching sometimes,” said Clarkson, who has already offered to pay for the repairs.
His Magpies counterpart Nathan Buckley was left with far more damage to sift through as his side became the most vulnerable in the top four.
Collingwood’s percentage is lower than any of the current top six.
“We may (have to win one more game than rivals to make the top four),” Buckley conceded after his side’s second loss in three matches.
“Wins and losses are king at the end of round 23, and there’s other results that are going to come into play with that.
“Your percentage is one thing, but we want to win every game that we play.”
The Magpies get a chance to bolster their percentage when they play struggling Greater Western Sydney in Sydney next weekend.
