Hawks skipper facing modified start to pre-season after surgery
James Sicily has surgery on his troublesome shoulder
HAWTHORN captain James Sicily has undergone a shoulder reconstruction this week to fix the issue he carried across the second half of the season.
The All-Australian defender had surgery on Tuesday and will start pre-season on a modified program when the Hawks report back to the club on November 25.
Sicily will gradually transition into full contact training after Christmas.
The 29-year-old dislocated his right shoulder against the Western Bulldogs in round eight and returned in that game to help the Hawks win their second match of the season.
Sicily was sidelined for a fortnight but a decision was made to push surgery to the end of season. He then played the next five games before suffering another dislocation against West Coast in round 16.
After missing the following week, Sicily returned against Fremantle in round 18 and kicked three goals in the 13-point win at University of Tasmania Stadium.
He played the final nine games of the season, including both finals, where he starred in the elimination final win against the Western Bulldogs before almost leading Hawthorn to victory in the dying minutes of the semi-final against Port Adelaide.
The 2022 Peter Crimmins Medallist was named in the All-Australian squad for the third time.
Reigning best and fairest winner Will Day underwent collarbone surgery last week to repair the complex injury he sustained in round 23, which ruled him out of both finals.
The 23-year-old will gradually transition into full training over the first half of the pre-season.
Day’s injury was even more complicated than surgeons realised before they operated, and further injury could have had potentially serious health implications.
