JAKE Lever is edging closer to full fitness as he continues to recover from an ankle injury.

AFL High Performance Manager Selwyn Griffith said the defender is recovering well and will look to increase his workload over the next few weeks.

“Jake (Lever) has had a really strong last week,” Griffith said.

“He integrated into some training today, which is great — so he’ll look to increase his loads and be involved in more training across the next few sessions.”

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Harrison Petty has entered the AFL’s concussion protocols following a head knock against West Coast on Saturday.

“It was an unfortunate episode before half time for Petts. But he’s recovered well,” Griffith said.

“He began his first stage of the concussion protocol today, and he’ll continue to progress through that as his symptoms allow — with the hope that he’ll be back into some training at the end of this week. Then we’ll assess his availability the following week.”

Marty Hore also continues to progress through his rehabilitation program.

“Marty (Hore) unfortunately had some calf tightness after a session last week,” he said.

“We’ve had to stay steady with his program. He’ll continue to build towards getting back to playing, but at this stage, it’s just slowed his return.”

Clayton Oliver returned to training on Tuesday after missing the club’s Round 8 clash against West Coast.

“Clayton missed the game last week, he completed a session with some of our VFL squad on the weekend, and integrated back into full training today,” Griffith said.

“We’ll continue to work with him across the week to have the best plan for his mental and physical wellbeing. The plan is for him to train on Thursday, and then we’ll assess his availability for selection following that session.”

Ricky Mentha is another Demon working through concussion protocols after a training incident last week.

“Ricky unfortunately suffered a concussion at our main training session last week,” Griffith said.

“He’s through the first couple of phases of the concussion protocol and won’t be available for this week. We’ll look to progress him as his symptoms allow, with him hopefully returning to playing and training next week.”

Meanwhile, Kysaiah Pickett is expected to be available for selection after recovering from an ankle injury sustained late in Saturday’s win.

“Koz (Pickett) had an ankle sprain towards the end of the game, but he’s recovered well,” Griffith said.

“He was part of full training today. Our expectation is he’ll have another full training and be available for this week.”

Injury List

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Player Injury Estimated Return
38. Oliver Sestan

38. Oliver Sestan

Face Available

“Oli has had a great couple of weeks in training,” Griffith said. “He's obviously been modified from a contact perspective, but he's back into full training this week, so that will allow him two weeks of full contact training before we play in that first week of finals.”

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21. Matt Jefferson

21. Matt Jefferson

Toe TBC

“Jeffo landed awkwardly in a marking contest,” Griffith said. “While initially he tried to continue to play on, unfortunately the pain and function decreased. “He's had a scan which is unfortunately showing that he's injured his big toe. At this stage, we'll have to determine his return based on how far through the VFL team goes in finals.”

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43. Jack Henderson

43. Jack Henderson

Groin TBC

“Hendo played against Brisbane and pulled up a little bit sore following that game, so we made the call to try and manage him this week,” Griffith said. “He's still not responding the way that we would like him to, so it's unlikely he'll return again this season. “We'll continue to work with him day to day on managing that hip and groin concern.”

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20. Xavier Lindsay

20. Xavier Lindsay

Hamstring Season

“He completed a rehab session on the weekend with good volume,” AFL High Performance Manager Selwyn Griffith said.“Unfortunately he's  still not comfortable at those top end speeds. With a short turnaround, we made the decision to make sure that Xavier is able to transition into the offseason program healthy and just avoid any risk associated with his return this Friday night.”

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6. Caleb Windsor

6. Caleb Windsor

Hamstring Season

“Unfortunately for Caleb, he went to kick the ball and felt some pain in his left hamstring,” Melbourne’s High-Performance Manager Selwyn Griffith said. “Scans have shown that he's got a high grade hamstring strain, so we'll work with Caleb now to make sure that he's right tracking into the offseason and look to set him up for a really strong return for the 2026 season.”

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8. Jake Lever

8. Jake Lever

Ankle Season

“He had another good week on the track and has progressed into some agility. “Unfortunately, we're just going to run out of time to have him available to play senior football this year. "But he's tracking really well and we'll look to set him up for a really strong off-season to see him back for the 2026 season.”

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27. Marty Hore

27. Marty Hore

Knee/Shoulder Season

“Marty had his ACL repaired last week after previously injuring his biceps tendon. Once he’s off crutches, he’ll also require shoulder surgery. “But he’s recovering well and we’ll support him closely through both recoveries.”

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23. Shane McAdam

23. Shane McAdam

Achilles Season

“Shane’s had a great couple of weeks and has really progressed well from a strength perspective,” Griffith said. “That’s transferred into some of his power work, which allowed him to begin running last week. “We’ll keep working on his conditioning capacity while also building strength and power through his gym work.”

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45. Andy Moniz-Wakefield

45. Andy Moniz-Wakefield

Knee Season

“Andy has had a great couple of weeks of his program,” Selwyn Griffith said. “He continues to work really hard on his lower body strength and power. “As a part of this current phase he’s begun to run.”

Read Article
38. Oliver Sestan

38. Oliver Sestan

“Oli has had a great couple of weeks in training,” Griffith said. “He's obviously been modified from a contact perspective, but he's back into full training this week, so that will allow him two weeks of full contact training before we play in that first week of finals.”

Read Article
Injury: Face
Est. Return: Available
21. Matt Jefferson

21. Matt Jefferson

“Jeffo landed awkwardly in a marking contest,” Griffith said. “While initially he tried to continue to play on, unfortunately the pain and function decreased. “He's had a scan which is unfortunately showing that he's injured his big toe. At this stage, we'll have to determine his return based on how far through the VFL team goes in finals.”

Read Article
Injury: Toe
Est. Return: TBC
43. Jack Henderson

43. Jack Henderson

“Hendo played against Brisbane and pulled up a little bit sore following that game, so we made the call to try and manage him this week,” Griffith said. “He's still not responding the way that we would like him to, so it's unlikely he'll return again this season. “We'll continue to work with him day to day on managing that hip and groin concern.”

Read Article
Injury: Groin
Est. Return: TBC
20. Xavier Lindsay

20. Xavier Lindsay

“He completed a rehab session on the weekend with good volume,” AFL High Performance Manager Selwyn Griffith said.“Unfortunately he's  still not comfortable at those top end speeds. With a short turnaround, we made the decision to make sure that Xavier is able to transition into the offseason program healthy and just avoid any risk associated with his return this Friday night.”

Read Article
Injury: Hamstring
Est. Return: Season
6. Caleb Windsor

6. Caleb Windsor

“Unfortunately for Caleb, he went to kick the ball and felt some pain in his left hamstring,” Melbourne’s High-Performance Manager Selwyn Griffith said. “Scans have shown that he's got a high grade hamstring strain, so we'll work with Caleb now to make sure that he's right tracking into the offseason and look to set him up for a really strong return for the 2026 season.”

Read Article
Injury: Hamstring
Est. Return: Season
8. Jake Lever

8. Jake Lever

“He had another good week on the track and has progressed into some agility. “Unfortunately, we're just going to run out of time to have him available to play senior football this year. "But he's tracking really well and we'll look to set him up for a really strong off-season to see him back for the 2026 season.”

Read Article
Injury: Ankle
Est. Return: Season
27. Marty Hore

27. Marty Hore

“Marty had his ACL repaired last week after previously injuring his biceps tendon. Once he’s off crutches, he’ll also require shoulder surgery. “But he’s recovering well and we’ll support him closely through both recoveries.”

Read Article
Injury: Knee/Shoulder
Est. Return: Season
23. Shane McAdam

23. Shane McAdam

“Shane’s had a great couple of weeks and has really progressed well from a strength perspective,” Griffith said. “That’s transferred into some of his power work, which allowed him to begin running last week. “We’ll keep working on his conditioning capacity while also building strength and power through his gym work.”

Read Article
Injury: Achilles
Est. Return: Season
45. Andy Moniz-Wakefield

45. Andy Moniz-Wakefield

“Andy has had a great couple of weeks of his program,” Selwyn Griffith said. “He continues to work really hard on his lower body strength and power. “As a part of this current phase he’s begun to run.”

Read Article
Injury: Knee
Est. Return: Season

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