Suns query Hanley call

GOLD Coast assistant coach Dean Solomon says the Suns may have been wrong to let Pearce Hanley play against North Melbourne but he hasn’t ruled out the midfielder returning for this weekend’s clash with Sydney.

Hanley missed the entire second half of Gold Coast’s win over North Melbourne on Saturday after suffering a recurrence of the hamstring

problem that sidelined him in the final quarter a week earlier against St Kilda.

Gold Coast let Hanley have a big say in whether he played against the Kangaroos because of his past experiences at back- ing up after having hamstring troubles.

Solomon admitted the club could have been wrong to allow Hanley, who got scans yesterday, to play but said the Suns still trusted the players to influence the decision.

“In hindsight maybe we made the wrong decision but we will learn from that,” Solomon said.

“We have a lot of trust in all our players with the way they feel and especially guys who are quite experienced and gone through similar injuries in the past.

“We won’t put the end result on Pearce’s head.

“It was a group discussion among coaches, high performance staff and Pearce.

“That was the reason why we went ahead and gave it the green light.”

Solomon said the Suns were confident young forward Callum Ah Chee would be fit to make the trip to Sydney after he was troubled by shoulder soreness on the weekend.

Gold Coast could also welcome back experienced midfielder Michael Rischitelli for what would be his first game since rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in the Round 16 QClash against Brisbane last season.

Rischitelli returned to the midfield for the first time on Saturday while playing for Gold Coast’s NEAFL side against Aspley.

The 31-year-old collected 27 possessions and kicked a goal after spending his previous two games for the reserves at halfback.

“We watched him really closely,” Solomon said.

“He’s building really nicely. His movement – he is not showing any affects.

“His name is going to be thrown around the table, there is no doubt about that.

“If it’s not this week then he will be coming in the next couple of weeks.”

Solomon said Rischitelli’s experience was critical to the whole club.