Gold Coast Suns star Ben King's 2022 season is already over after scans confirmed he'd ruptured his ACL at training.
The 21-year-old forward crumpled to the ground after a marking contest and clutched at his right knee during match simulation at Suns training.
Gold Coast football manager Wayne Campbell confirmed the devastating diagnosis on Friday.
“Unfortunately Ben’s ruptured his ACL in his right knee in a pretty simple marking contest that he’d been in many times before,” Campbell said.
“Ben’s going well, whenever someone goes down with an ACL it’s shattering for a start.
“He’s got a really strong family and we’ve got some really good support around him from the footy club, it’s not ideal by any stretch but we know Ben’s strength of character will see him attack the challenge in a positive manner.”
King - who is out of contract at the end of the season - is being chased by several Victorian clubs, including St Kilda and Essendon, after a stellar start to his AFL career.
The power forward has kicked 89 goals in his first 53 matches and has been a shining light for the Suns after a dark couple of seasons.
In further bad news for the Suns, no.5 draft pick Mac Andrew injured his ankle in the same marking contest that King hurt his knee and didn't return after leaving the field.
