FREMANTLE superstar Nat Fyfe says he has avoided serious damage to his troublesome elbow after being forced from the training track at Cockburn on Monday.
The Dockers were concerned for their skipper after he was tackled and landed heavily on his right arm, which has been bandaged in recent weeks to protect an inflamed bursa.
"(It's) not too bad. Sent a bit of a scare through the camp," Fyfe told Perth radio station 6PR.
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"I've got an inflamed bursa on my right elbow, which I'm training with strapped up at the moment, and I got tackled and landed quite heavily on that exact spot.
"It's pretty painful, but not lasting damage. It's just something I'll have to manage for the next couple of weeks."
The news is a relief to the Dockers, whose depleted midfield stocks can ill-afford another injury setback with Connor Blakely (hamstring) out until about round seven and Stephen Hill (quad) sidelined until at least round three.
Fyfe expected 33-year-old veteran David Mundy would be shifted from his predominantly forward role to help cover dual Doig medallist Lachie Neale's absence in the early rounds.
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Neale led the Dockers for average disposals (30.1) and clearances (7.1) last season, and ranked second for contested possessions (15) and tackles (4.2).
"Lach's a big loss from a leadership capacity and just his general ball-winning, that contested-type player," Fyfe said.
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"There is a bit of a hole there. Reece Conca has come across (from Richmond) and he's putting his hand up, as is (ex-Bomber) Travis Colyer.
"(Adam) Cerra and (Andy) Brayshaw in their second years are players we're putting a lot of time and effort getting them into our midfield.
"The obvious replacement is Dave Mundy, who has played as a forward for us the last year, year-and-a-half, but he's an established midfielder and most likely, particularly in the short term, he'll come back in and play as a midfielder."
Fyfe is expected to captain the Flyers in AFLX on February 22 at Marvel Stadium and will draft his squad of players on Wednesday.
