ACL injury fear for star on a nightmare night for Essendon; Dockers prevail over Hawks in Perth thriller
Vlastuin marks milestone with a win on a horror night for Bombers
Essendon fear star midfielder Nic Martin has injured his anterior cruciate ligament in the Bombers' upset loss to Richmond in one of the worst matches of the season.
The Tigers celebrated premiership hero Nick Vlastuin's 250th game with a stirring nine-point victory – 6.10 (46) to 4.13 (37) – despite not scoring a goal in the second and third quarters.
Martin's right knee twisted when he was tackled by Rhyan Mansell in the first quarter of the game. His left knee crashed into the Astroturf surrounding the boundary, but the damage was done to the ACL in his right knee.
The Bombers are also sweating on a foot injury to important on-baller Will Setterfield, who was trodden on. He was sporting a large ice pack to his right foot in the rooms.
The Dons' lengthy injury list has provided an alibi for their performances this season but a loss to the similarly depleted and rebuilding Tigers will put Brad Scott's team under scrutiny.
The Tigers and Bombers came into this game with losing streaks of seven and five games respectively – and played accordingly.
The two clubs played the first goalless quarter of the season in a match riddled with errors. Neither side could perform the basics of the game. Kicks were punted out of bounds under little pressure. Ground balls were fumbled, and uncontested chest marks were grassed.
Surprisingly, the 47 kick clangers exceeded by just three the season average of 44.
Not that those in the yellow and black in the crowd of 52,125 will mind. For the Tigers faithful who have kept coming in this dark season, they were rewarded with a fourth victory of the year, and a win to complement their memorable upset over another fierce rival, Carlton, on the first night of their campaign.
And they saw a favourite son, Vlastuin, honoured in a milestone game. He was chaired off by Nathan Broad and Ben Miller to a guard of honour formed by players from both clubs.
Fittingly, the gun defender made a key spoil in the closing seconds which snuffed out any hope the Bombers had of pinching the game at the death.
Full-time: Richmond 6.10 (46) defeat Essendon 4.13 (37)
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