WANGARATTA Rovers’ chances of dodging the wooden spoon have taken a huge hit with captain Tyson Hartwig to play his final match of the Ovens and Murray season against Wodonga at John Flower Oval tomorrow.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Hartwig will undergo surgery on his injured thumb on Monday after seeing a specialist earlier this week.
Coach Paul Maher said the star fullback would be a huge loss.
“He’s a wonderful player and wonderful servant of the club and to lose him for a significant amount of time will have a huge impact on the side,” Maher said.
The fullback injured his thumb in the final quarter against Lavington in round 8 and withdrew the following weekend against reigning premier Albury.
He bravely returned to play on Yarrawonga co-coach Brendan Fevola last Saturday and held the league’s leading goal-kicker to six majors in the 41-point loss.
Hartwig has also been forced to withdraw from the Victoria Country squad to play the VAFA at Bendigo’s Queen Elizabeth Oval on July 11.
He looks set to pick up Bulldog veteran Daniel Bradshaw tomorrow.
The Rovers lost youngster Brenton Cooper and Ben Kneebone to injury, but recalled stars Lochie Dornauf and Sean O’Keefe, as well as rookie Brayden Robins.
Wodonga brought Jarrod Twitt and Sam Livingstone back among five changes.
Meanwhile, Lavington has regained Adam Butler for only his fifth senior match of the season for tomorrow’s crunch clash against Yarrawonga.
The Panthers were dealt a blow with Matt Pendergast out through injury, while Yarrawonga lost Ricky Barnes but recalled Scott Oswald.
Myrtleford received a triple boost for its showdown against Wodonga Raiders, with Kristan Height and the Sharp twins, Brady and Riley, coming into the team.
