Petracca goes down, pulled from Brownlow betting markets

Melbourne’s Brownlow Medal fancy Christian Petracca’s season is potentially over, with the Demons star suffering broken ribs, a punctured lung and a ruptured spleen.

Petracca has now been pulled from Brownlow Medal betting at all major Australian bookmakers, with the midfielder-forward $21 to win the award prior to round 13.

Petracca began the season under the $10 quote to win the Brownlow, but has spent large parts of the AFL season in attack, where players traditionally do not poll well.

The injury has also curtailed the Demons premiership aspirations, with the Demons now paying $16 to win the flag, after opening the season as $6 third favourite.

Melbourne football chief Alan Richardson said Petracca was in the best of hands and did not put a date on his return.

“The next few weeks will be crucial, and we’ll be monitoring his progress closely to make sure he heals properly and fully. As his recovery progresses, we will look towards a return to play timeline,” he said.

“He’s obviously an extremely important player for the team, but his health and recovery are our top priorities right now.”

The Petracca incident occurred during the second quarter when Collingwood skipper Darcy Moore jumped into a pack and had his knee hit the rib cage area.

Petracca returned to the field but was clearly hampered and eventually came off permanently.

The Brownlow Medal received a shake-up over the weekend, with Collingwood ace and favourite Nick Daicos ($4.50) tagged out of the Kings Birthday clash on Monday, before being subbed out, with the club describing it as “precautionary”.

Essendon star Zach Merrett ($9 to win Brownlow) was also heavily tagged and had little impact in their loss to Carlton, with Alex Cincotta taking the points.

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