Sydney Swans ruckman Sam Naismith has been transferred to the inactive list and won’t feature this season. 

Naismith is continuing to recover from a third knee reconstruction, which he had midway through last year. The surgery was a two-part operation, with the second procedure taking place in October last year.

Sydney Swans Executive GM – Football Charlie Gardiner said although Naismith has worked incredibly hard on his rehabilitation to this point, he is still some time away from being able to fully train and play. 

“Sam has shown incredible commitment and resilience in his mission to return to elite football, but his recovery is still going to take some time from here,” Gardiner said. 

“Sam is currently five months into a 12 month rehabilitation program, and given this is Sam’s third knee reconstruction, we will be taking a conservative approach to maximise his chances of making a full and successful recovery.”

Naismith has had an unlucky run with successive knee injuries, limiting him to just two AFL games since 2017.