GEELONG rookie Stefan Okunbor will spend an extended stint on the sidelines after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon at training on Wednesday.
The Cats have confirmed the powerfully-built Irishman, who joined the club ahead of the 2019 season, will undergo surgery on Sunday.
“It’s shattering news; he was going really well,” assistant coach Matthew Scarlett told the Cat Attack Podcast.
“It happened about five or six metres in front of me in one of the drills we were doing.
“He was charging out of the backline and went down and there wasn’t anyone around him. He thought someone had kicked him from behind.
“Straight away it looked like a painful and serious injury.
Okunbor, 21, played eight VFL games last year, and Scarlett said he was being considered for the Geelong’s Marsh Series matches.
“He was on-track to feature in our pre-season games and being spoken about as half-a-chance of maybe getting a game or two in the senior line-up,” Scarlett.
“It’s devastating news for him. But knowing what he’s like, he’ll rehab really strongly and be back.
“But it’s a really nasty injury for him and really bad timing.”
Twitter: @tom_king79
