Dockers skipper Pearce avoids surgery after Grand Final injury
Fremantle captain Alex Pearce will not need surgery after partially tearing his right Achilles tendon in the AFL Grand Final.
Scans have confirmed the 31-year-old suffered a partial tear rather than a complete rupture, along with a significant calf strain in the same leg. Fremantle football manager Joe Brierty said Pearce would complete rehab without an operation, in an update published on 29 September ABC News. The club expects him to rejoin the main training group in the pre-season, the summer training block before next season. That timeline was also set out in Fremantle's official injury note Fremantle FC.
Pearce was hurt in the third quarter of Saturday's decider against Brisbane. He went down while chasing the ball and stayed on the turf before being helped from the field. He took no further part in the game.
The Achilles is the strong cord that joins the calf muscle to the heel bone. A partial tear means some of the fibres are damaged but the tendon is still in one piece. Doctors often treat that type of injury with rest, physio and a gradual loading program rather than surgery.
A calf strain alongside it complicates the early rehab. The calf drives push-off and jumping, so soreness there limits how much load the leg can take. Fremantle has described the calf injury as significant, which points to a careful start before any running resumes.
That is some relief after a brutal night for the Dockers. The Grand Final is the AFL's one-game decider for the premiership, played at the end of the finals series. Brisbane beat Fremantle by seven points to take the flag. Fremantle still held a 17-point lead with four minutes left, before Brisbane kicked late goals to win. It was Brisbane's third premiership in a row, the second time in club history it has won three straight.
For fans, this means a double blow in one night. The team lost a Grand Final it had led late. It also lost its captain to a serious leg injury on the biggest stage.
Fremantle said it would not hold a public event to thank supporters after the loss. The message came in the same round of updates as the news on Pearce.
Separate reporting last week said Tasmania had maintained its interest in Pearce despite the injury Fox Sports. That link remains background for now, with Fremantle focused only on his recovery. If rehab stays on track, the skipper should be running again well before the new season starts.
