Border Mail |
JASON Gram’s season could be over.
The North Albury ace will sweat on the results of scans today after suffering what looked a serious ankle injury during the Hoppers’ 19-point loss to Wangaratta Rovers on Saturday.
Gram trapped himself while laying a tackle in the centre of Bunton Park almost 10 minutes into the final quarter and took no further part in the game.
He left the ground in extreme pain and finished the game on crutches with his ankle heavily iced.
Gram had racked up 25 possessions until that point and was threatening to turn the game on its head after slowly working himself into form.
The former St Kilda midfielder conceded immediately after Saturday’s defeat he was all but certain to miss a couple of games but was confident of making it back in time for finals.
North Albury coach Jason Akermanis said the Hoppers would know more this week when the results of the scans were clear.
“We’ve got to have a look but you never know,” Akermanis said.
“It could be the season, it could be two weeks, it could be one week or no week.
“We’ll just see how it pulls up.
“He certainly did show some good signs in the second half but as a coach you don’t want that, you want that in the first half.
“It’s a shame he’s done his ankle because he lives here now and we’re about to see him do the loads and the training and see what he can do.”
The Hoppers face Corowa-Rutherglen, Lavington and Wodonga Raiders leading into finals, meaning Gram has less than a month to get himself right before a probable elimination final appearance against the Hawks at Myrtleford.
Despite Saturday’s loss, Akermanis remains confident his troops can make amends when it counts.
“We’ll learn a lot out of that,” Akermanis said.
“It gave us a great chance to work out those six blokes we’ll need to shut down and do jobs on next time.
“We know if we play four quarters like our second half this result will turn around.”
In positive news, Josh Lloyd got through his return match in the reserves and could play his first senior game for the year this week.
He booted two goals, despite suffering a heavy shoulder knock.
“He looked good and was up and about — he had a little clash with his shoulder, but it was good to see him out there,” Akermanis said.
