AFL Round 5 teams: Injuries hit ahead of Gather Round

Source: heraldsun.com.au

TL;DR

The story at a glance

The Herald Sun piece rounds up the latest ins, outs, injuries, and selection whispers for AFL Round 5's Gather Round, where all nine games happen across South Australia venues like Adelaide Oval and Barossa Park. It covers teams such as Adelaide, Carlton, Collingwood, Fremantle, and others facing key absences from concussion, back, knee, and hamstring issues. Reporting comes now as clubs finalise squads before Thursday's opener between Adelaide and Carlton. Gather Round packs every match into four days for a festival atmosphere.[[1]](https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2026-round-5-team-tips-predicted-sides-and-squads-ins-and-outs-team-changes-injuries-latest-team-news/news-story/0f9871b8a1ea3c6bc9b19eadef60dde7)[[2]](https://www.espn.com.au/afl/story/_/id/48372857/afl-teams-round-5-2026-team-news-selection-whispers-injuries-news-fixtures-tips-odds-scores)

Key points

Details and context

Gather Round shifts all Round 5 action to South Australia (April 9-12), starting with Adelaide v Carlton at Adelaide Oval, followed by Collingwood v Fremantle, then Saturday triple-header: North Melbourne v Brisbane (Barossa), Essendon v Melbourne, Sydney v Gold Coast (Norwood), Hawthorn v Western Bulldogs, GWS v Richmond (Barossa), Port Adelaide v St Kilda, and Geelong v West Coast (Norwood) Sunday.[[4]](https://www.afl.com.au/gather-round)

Injuries hit hard early season, with concussions (Weitering, Dean, Butts) forcing protocols and defensive reshuffles; backs like Fogarty's disc problem deny goals. Returns like Daicos (key for Pies' midfield) and Andrews (Lions' defence) could swing matches, while VFL standouts (Buller, Dowling) push for debuts or recalls. Coaches balance short turnarounds, testing doubtful players like Dangerfield (Geelong calf).[[3]](https://www.afl.com.au/matches/injury-list)

Key quotes

Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks on Darcy Fogarty: “We won’t get Fog back. Fog’s going to be another week. He won’t be right by Thursday.”[[5]](https://www.afc.com.au/news/1989928/nicks-reveals-early-gather-round-team-news)

Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir on outs: Confirmed Hayden Young and Michael Frederick out another week.[[1]](https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2026-round-5-team-tips-predicted-sides-and-squads-ins-and-outs-team-changes-injuries-latest-team-news/news-story/0f9871b8a1ea3c6bc9b19eadef60dde7)

Why it matters

Injuries and selections decide early ladder positions in a packed Gather Round, testing depth across all 18 clubs in high-stakes SA venues. Fans and SuperCoach players track outs like Fogarty or English for impacts on scoring and matchups; teams like Carlton face defensive crises without Weitering. Watch Tuesday tribunal (Hayward ban), Wednesday team sheets, and Daicos/Dangerfield fitness tests for final lineups.[[1]](https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2026-round-5-team-tips-predicted-sides-and-squads-ins-and-outs-team-changes-injuries-latest-team-news/news-story/0f9871b8a1ea3c6bc9b19eadef60dde7)