FREMANTLE has defended its management of Shane Kersten's season-long foot injury after powerful player manager Colin Young called for an immediate review of the club's rehabilitation programs.
Kersten has followed another of Young's clients, Harley Bennell, in negotiating an early release from his expiring contract as the WA-based manager voiced major concerns about the Dockers' injury management.
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"I have serious concerns on how the club rehabilitates its players (and) it's my opinion that this area of the club needs an immediate review," Young told The West Australian.
"Immediate changes need to be made or the club is going nowhere."
Bennell has since undergone calf surgery in a bid to resurrect his career, while Kersten will now also undertake his own rehab away from the club.
The 26-year-old hasn't been sighted at Freo training since limping off the track in January with a plantar fascia issue which was expected to sideline him for two weeks.
He was then sent for surgery in March that was intended to have him back two months later, but the ex-Cat hasn't been able to add to his 29 games in purple.
In response to comments from Young, who had 17 Dockers on his books until recently, Fremantle's football boss Peter Bell backed the club's handling of Kersten's injury.
"We have highly experienced, capable and committed professionals with input, when required, from local, national and, at times, international specialists and experts in their field," Bell said.
"Part of their important role is to mitigate the impact of an injury a player incurs when playing or training and we are always looking to enhance and improve our operations.
"Despite Shane not being able to play in 2019, we are confident with how the injury was managed, treated and reviewed, and that the club has done everything possible to support Shane with our player welfare services." - Peter Bell
Under-siege coach Ross Lyon this week blamed "personnel challenges" for a stark drop-off in Freo's form over the past six games.
The Dockers have lost five of those matches – including 91 and 47-point hammerings from the Eagles and Bulldogs – and plummeted from sixth on the ladder to 12th.
After a spate of soft-tissue injuries last season led to an internal review, the Dockers' depth has again been tested by a variety of setbacks suffered by key players in 2019.
There have been growing concerns about veteran Stephen Hill's quad, hamstring and calf problems, which have restricted him to 16 games in two seasons.
Boom recruit Jesse Hogan was also misdiagnosed with a mid-foot sprain in June when he had in fact suffered a recurrence of the navicular injury which he arrived with from Melbourne.
Meanwhile, fellow key forward Matt Taberner's past two seasons have been severely curtailed by fractures in the same foot, and star backman Alex Pearce is recovering from a fractured left ankle after previously re-breaking his right leg during rehab.
