CAPTAIN CROOK

Lauderdale loses Walsh on eve of finals assault

LAUDERDALE has been dealt a body blow on the eve of its TSL elimination final against Clarence under lights at Blundstone Arena on Saturday, with the loss of captain Bryce Walsh for the rest of the season.

Doctors gave Walsh the bad news yesterday after the latest scan showed he had damaged the ankle that had kept him sidelined from Round 1 until two weeks before the end of the home-andaway season.

Walsh got his ankle bent at an awkward angle in a contest against North Launceston at Lauderdale Oval on Saturday.

He gave the club the bad news straight after his medical assessment.

“It looks like he’s out for the rest of the season,” Lauderdale coach Darren Winter said.

“He did it in the first quarter and kept playing for another 10 minutes.

“It started to hurt him so we took him off.

“He’s been back to the doctor and he’s been told that he’ll be out for another four weeks or so.

“So we’ll put him on ice for the rest of the year.”

Lauderdale could ill afford to lose its skipper and one of the State League’s best inside midfielders for its biggest game of the season.

“It’s a big blow, losing your captain,” Winter said.

“It’s for the second time in the year, which is pretty disappointing for the team.

“Bryce is upbeat about it. He will be there supporting the boys.”

A replacement is hard to find for a player of Walsh’s calibre.

“We will probably bring in Leo Harrison, but we certainly can’t replace our captain so it’s a hit for us going into the finals,” Winter said.

“Leo plays a good run-with role and he will get a job on the weekend, probably [Clarence coach] Jeromey Webberley or [captain] Brad Jones, or someone like that.

“He’s very disciplined in what he does so we’ll try and get one of their key players shut down.”

Clarence and Glenorchy meet at 6pm, with Glenorchy and Launceston to play the qualifying final at 3pm.