DUAL Richmond premiership midfielder Kane Lambert will join defender Dylan Grimes out of the Tigers' clash with Fremantle on Wednesday night.
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Damien Hardwick wouldn't buy into who would replace the onballer ahead of match committee on Tuesday afternoon, but confirmed Nathan Broad, who was dropped last week, would replace the hamstrung Grimes.
However, their flag teammate Josh Caddy has suffered another hamstring setback in his bid to win his spot back, with tightness to rule him out for at least one week.
The Tigers will take a cautious approach with Lambert given the six-day break following the win over West Coast ahead of a crunch round 17 game with Geelong.
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"Kane Lambert's pulled up a little bit sore as well," Hardwick said on Tuesday.
"He's got a bit of a hip complaint, so we'll take the conservative option and give him a spell this week,"
"He's just got a little bit sore over the last couple of weeks, so we just want to make sure he's right for the back-end of the year."
It comes as Dion Prestia started running on Tuesday with an eye to returning in the first week of finals.
The reigning best and fairest has been connected to an intravenous drip in an attempt to flush out an infection stemming from his latest bout of ankle surgery late last month.
"It's not the injury itself that's going to need a little bit of time, it's just everything around the injury," Hardwick said.
"With the soft tissue nature of the game, it will be the one thing we'll need to make sure we get Dion back to full fitness.
"We're hoping the bye at the front-end of the finals will be a blessing for him and give him another week of prep.
"Fingers crossed he gets some footy towards the back-end of the home and away season, but probably more likely the first couple weeks of finals."
The Tigers will receive a further boost with Shane Edwards in line to play in round 18 against Adelaide, with the premiership star to begin his 14-day quarantine when he lands in Queensland on Tuesday.
Edwards will be able to train with Geelong champion Gary Ablett in the hub, having previously been training with Brendon Gale in Melbourne, during which the Tigers chief executive injured his calf.
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Hardwick also confirmed captain Trent Cotchin had flagged a conversation with the club about leaving the Tigers' hub earlier this season, before opting to play out the year.
"There was a conversation at one stage," Hardwick said.
"Trent, as a family man, will always do what's best for his family. We're very much a club that is aligned to those values. We won't ask a person to put themselves above their family.
"Trent had some decisions to make and he's very supportive of his family as we are supportive of Trent.
"Probably 90 per cent of the people up here at some stage have gone, 'Look, it's hard, I probably would think about going home'.
"The reality is, Trent has stuck fat, his family's stuck fat, they've been incredible up here and we're incredibly supportive of both of them."
