Geelong premiership hero Tyson Stengle withdrawn due to ‘family issue’ as George Stevens named to debut

Geelong will be without Tyson Stengle for Saturday’s clash against Richmond with the premiership forward dealing with a “family issue”.

Stengle was named in the Cats’ 23-man team on Thursday night, but coach Chris Scott revealed he won’t play when he fronted the media on Friday.

Scott didn’t elaborate on the reasons, but said Stengle remains interstate.

The classy forward’s withdrawal opens the door for George Stevens to make his AFL debut.

“At least in the very short term, Tyson Stengle is not going to play. He has got a family issue that he is dealing with,” Scott said on Friday.

“But it has opened up the opportunity for us to bring George Stevens in to make his debut.

“As is our practice, generally if there’s a 0.1 per cent chance that the guy might play, we wait until the very last minute.

“(Stengle) is still interstate so at this stage we know he won’t play so when that happens we intend to communicate it.”

Taken with pick No.58 in the 2023 AFL draft, Stevens has been forced to bide his time in the VFL before getting his opportunity.

Scott also confirmed the big-bodied midfielder will be a part of the 22 and won’t start as the substitute.

“It is an interesting question because the point has been brought up, I am not a fan of the sub rule to be honest but I am only one opinion in the ether,” Scott said.

“It is not the reason I am not a fan of it, but it is not great when a debutant is the sub.

“I was always taught and I still fundamentally believe it now, that the team trumps the individual.

“It is not a matter of us being nice guys, we just think that the right thing for our team this week is for him to be in the 22.”

Superstar Bailey Smith wasn’t at training on Friday, but Scott allayed any fears of the midfielder not playing.

Forgotten veteran Cam Guthrie, who hasn’t played a senior game this year and managed just 10 since the 2022 grand final, will likely play in the VFL this week as he continues his bid for a late-season return.

“We are looking at eight weeks to go in the home and away season and we are quite bullish on, I don’t want to call it the probability of working his way back into the team, but what I am bullish on is that if he gets an uninterrupted run, there is no reason why he can’t play at a similar level to his best at AFL footy,” Scott said of Guthrie.

“He has done a lot of work, he’s going to have little hiccups along the way which he has already had with his VFL return.

“The way he is moving at training reminds me a bit more of the Cam Guthrie I knew, so I am pretty positive on that, obviously without any guarantees.”

Saturday’s clash against Richmond will be Scott’s 350th as Geelong coach.