Young Star's Career at Risk After Serious Injury
Newcastle Jets coach Mark Milligan announced that Oscar Fryer will likely miss the rest of the A-League season following another severe knee injury. Fryer, a promising teenager, is expected to have 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."
Additional Injury Challenges for Newcastle Jets
The Jets are already struggling with injuries to key players, including Japanese star Kota Mizunuma and last season’s top scorer Eli Adams. Both are sidelined with long-term hamstring problems. Mizunuma has missed the first three games and is only now returning to light training, while Adams remains weeks away from returning.
Regulation Criticism on Injury Replacements
Milligan criticized the league's current policy that restricts injury replacements to players earning over $300,000 a season. This prevents the Jets from signing replacements for Fryer and Mizunuma, as neither falls under this category.
"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
Oscar Fryer's severe injury worsens Newcastle Jets' challenges, compounded by restrictive league rules on injury replacement signings.