Young Star's Career Threatened by Injury
Newcastle Jets coach Mark Milligan anticipates losing Oscar Fryer for the rest of the A-League season after the young player suffered a severe knee injury.
Injury Diagnosis and Impact
Scans on Monday are expected to confirm that Fryer ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during the Jets’ 4-1 loss to Sydney FC at McDonald Jones Stadium.
"There are a few things to go through, but it doesn't look great," Milligan said. "You don't want to see that happen to anybody, especially Ossie, who has had such a tough run already. Fingers crossed it is not as serious as we first thought."
Team Injuries and Squad Issues
The Jets are already dealing with long-term injuries to key players. Japanese star Kota Mizunuma has missed the first three games and is only doing light training, while last season's top scorer, Eli Adams, remains sidelined with a hamstring problem.
Milligan confirmed, "Adams was still 'a few weeks away.'"
Frustration Over Injury Replacement Rules
Milligan criticized the current regulations that prevent clubs without high payrolls from signing injury replacements. This concession is available only for players earning more than $300,000 per season.
"We have had the same issue with Kota," Milligan said. "When we have serious injuries in the club, we are unable to replace them because we don't meet the threshold money-wise, which I think is absolutely ridiculous. If it is a long-term injury, we can only replace them if they are on more than $300,000. We don't have any of those players."
Summary: Mark Milligan expressed deep concern over Oscar Fryer’s serious knee injury and criticized unfair league rules limiting injury replacements for smaller clubs.