Balta is unavailable for selection next week anyway as he is still subject to a magistrate-imposed curfew as a result of pleading guilty to assault after an incident in NSW in the off-season, which stops him from playing night matches.
Nick Vlastuin was not cited for his bump on Patrick Dangerfield, which caused their heads to clash. Both players played the game out.
Lalor may need hamstring surgery
Sam Lalor starred early in the season but has been struck down by hamstring injuries.Credit: Getty Images
Sam Lalor may need surgery after suffering a second hamstring injury for the season in the opening minutes of his comeback game against Geelong on Saturday.
Playing in his first match since May 23, when he strained his hamstring against Essendon in round 12, the 18-year-old injured the hamstring again in the opening minutes of Saturdayโs match.
Loading
The Tigers are not expected to know the recovery program until Monday when the full extent of the injury is revealed, but it is unlikely Lalor will play again in 2025.
The No.1 draft pick showed his prodigious talent in his first 10 matches, but repeat hamstring injuries means the Tigers will need to undertake a rigorous assessment of the issue to ensure the problem is solved before he appears next.
Coach Adem Yze said Lalorโs injury flattened teammates and coaches, but the club would support him through the disappointment.
โI think the mechanismโs something that itโs hard to train. So yeah, it looks like a bad one, which is really disappointing,โ Yze said.
โWeโve got to help him through that. We donโt want this to happen again. We want him to have a long career without these little hiccups.โ
Jacob Bauer suffered a suspected ACL injury in the VFL on Sunday in Geelong to top off a bad weekend on the injury front for Richmond.
The better news for the Tigers was the reappearance of talented defender Josh Gibcus and best-and-fairest winner Jayden Short in the VFL. Richmond have a talented crop of youngsters, with Taj Hotton moving closer to selection.
Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.
About The Author
