Hayden Ballantyne has been sent straight for surgery with a broken jaw, while Michael Barlow returned to Perth on crutches.
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Fremantle have suffered two major blows to its AFL premiership hopes yesterday, with star forward Hayden Ballantyne sent for surgery on a broken jaw sustained during Saturday’s loss to Sydney and Michael Barlow returning to Perth on crutches.
Ballantyne suffered the break in an accidental clash with Swans defender Ted Richards and left the field for some time before returning to play out the rest of the match.
The small forward was kept goal-less and restricted to just seven possessions during the 24-point loss to the Swans.
Fremantle football operations manager Chris Bond said Ballantyne had not yet been ruled out of Saturday’s semi-final against Port Adelaide at Patersons Stadium.
“It was a typically courageous performance by Hayden to play out the game with the injury,” Bond said.
“Hayden hasn’t been ruled out of Saturday’s game at this stage and will have to satisfy our medical staff about his fitness before he can be considered for selection.”
Fairfax Media say the extent of Barlow’s injury is unknown, however it is expected Luke McPharlin will miss another week.
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