I missed this on the first run through of the forums for the injury report, but apparently new Brisbane coach Michael Voss has let slip that small forward Sam Sheldon has contracted glandular fever and has been sent back to Melbourne to recuperate, with a “best case scenario” of a midyear return to football. Who, you might ask? Well, he was a fantasy smokie that several coaches were keeping their eyes on, especially me! 🙁
I had included Sheldon in my round 1 team projections post without comment, as I had heard that he was a strong prospect for early games but didn’t want to publicise my source. I had projected him as a centre for fantasy purposes but he was a strong chance to be classified as a forward, as that was one possible role for him in the new Voss-authored Brisbane structure.
The report came via BigFooty, from reliable Lions fan TheBrownDog, and I would have no reason not to think it’s authentic.
Was revealed by Voss at the AGM that Sammy has suffered a pretty major setback.
Is currently back home in Melbourne recovering from a pretty bad case of glandular fever and has lost a considerable amount of weight. He is being managed very cautiously(I imagine to avoid possible relapses or even worse, developing into chronic fatigue syndrome).
Best case scenario is a mid 2009 return to playing action. Feel bad for the kid, he showed a lot of commitment and self-belief by nominating a year before Carlton were willing to draft him, he deserves some good luck.
The bits about him losing weight are terrible news, as it means he’s probably going to be shut down for the year, with his body losing all the conditioning that the fitness staff would have worked into him. Oh well, back to the drawing board to look for another smokie!
