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Grover out injured

Mr Dandalooa

Fremantle Football Club veteran Antoni Grover could be out of action until round 4 of the AFL home-and-away season with a knee injury following the Dockers’ thrilling 4-point victory over North Melbourne at the weekend.

Grover injured his medial ligament in the NAB pre-season cup win at Docklands and could miss up to 8 weeks of footy, but is likely to return in about 5 weeks.

Freo is just one win away from reaching the grand final after a nail-biting finish at Etihad Stadium on Sunday when forward Ryan Murphy won the game with a goal with just seconds left to play.

The Dockers will return to the stadium this week in a clash with St Kilda because Subiaco Oval is unavailable for the ACDC concert.

While the Dockers 1.12.13 (94) defeated the Kangaroos 0.13.1 (90), its first win in Melbourne since round four, 2007, it was bitter sweet for Grover, the club’s oldest player.

Grover’s manager Anthony van der Wielen said the 167-gamer was tough and remained relived that the injury wasn’t anything more serious.

After trailing by 22 points early in the fourth quarter Melbourne hit back with three successive majors to take the lead at the 22-minute mark.

The cringe factor began creeping in again for Fremantle as the Roos gathered momentum.

But a quick play out of defence allowed the Dockers to take the ball the length of the field, creating space for Murphy who ran into an open goal thanks to a Stephen Hill.

Fremantle coach Mark Harvey said he was pleased to win away from home.

“It’s been a while [since we won in Victoria], so from a morale and self-belief point-of-view … hopefully it holds us in good stead,” he was reported as saying on the club’s website.

It was an important win, one without skipper Matthew Pavlich, who remained in the west. Paul Hasleby was also rested.

North Melbourne coach Brad Scott said his team did not deserve to win.

The winner of Fremantle’s clash with St Kilda clash will play the victor of the Port Adelaide and Western Bulldogs match in the grand final on March 13.