https://www.afl.com.au/news/1079581...kless-recruit-sam-naismith-primed-for-call-up
RICHMOND captain Toby Nankervis is facing a crucial training session on Tuesday in his bid to feature in the opening rounds of the season.
The ruckman is battling a "plantar fasciitis-heel pain" issue, which has only flared in recent weeks after a fairly smooth pre-season.
Should Nankervis not get through, it opens the door for recruit Sam Naismith to play his first game of AFL since round four, 2020, having suffered three knee reconstructions during his time at Sydney.
"I've had a bit of a niggle, I suppose a plantar fasciitis-heel pain sort of thing. I've never had any foot issues before," Nankervis told
AFL.com.au.
"Sort of just managing that now, and I've got a big session tomorrow, and hopefully I can tick that off and pull up well, and push for the early part of the season.
I'm not sure (on a return date), honestly. I'm just session to session at the moment, but I've managed to do a lot of work over pre-season, and just a little bit slow in the last couple of weeks. Hopefully I can knock over tomorrow and see where we're at.
"I know big Sammy Naismith from Sydney, and he's a great person. He's added so much to our group. It'll mean the world (to him), Sam's had a lot of challenges with his body and also some personal things as well. He's a great person, he's so resilient, the way he shows up to the footy club. He played really well last week, and tomorrow, he gets another opportunity."