Pyke, who injured his hamstring in seven, was expected to miss just one week, but was sidelined for last Friday night’s win over Essendon and could miss next week’s round 11 fixture with the Cats.
Speaking to SwansTV on Thursday morning, coach John Longmire confirmed that Pyke’s recovery was progressing slower than the club had hoped.
“We thought he was only going to be a one-weeker, but he’s still a little bit behind where we’d like him to be,” Longmire said.
“He’s no certainty for the Geelong game and we’ve got to make sure that we make the right decision with him.
“We initially thought it was only going to be the one week, but it’s stretched out a little bit and we’ll just need to see how he is next week.
“At this stage he’ll be doubtful for the Geelong game, but hopefully he’s right after that.”
Despite Pyke’s setback, the Swans are in a fortunate position when it comes to injuries, with Alex Johnson (knee) the only other player unavailable on the club’s injury list.
Ben McGlynn is expected to return for next week’s match at the SCG after missing last Friday night’s game due to illness, while a number of other Swans are also pushing for senior selection.
One player who has empathically put his hand up leading into the Geelong match is Tom Mitchell, who collected a record-breaking 64 touches in the Swans reserves 113-point win over Eastlake last Saturday.
Longmire said Mitchell’s numbers were impressive by any standards, adding that the 20-year-old would be in the mix for selection next week.
“We know he’s a really talented player, and to be able to get those sorts of stats at any level is quality, so he’s really knocking on the door now, which is really good,” he said.
“He’s played well and he’s been able to train consistently over a longer period of time than what he was earlier in the year.
“It doesn’t matter who you are, you need to have that consistency when training and practicing your craft to make sure you keep improving in the areas you need to work on.”
But the coach admitted the match committee would face some selection headaches next week, with nearly a full list to choose from.
“We’ve had some players come into the team and play quite well over the last four or five weeks and the challenge is who goes out when a player like (Mitchell) comes into the team,” he said.
“We’ll sit down next week heading into the Geelong game and will work that out.
“It’s a good issue to have to have quality players like that coming into some form at the lower levels who can put some pressure on and come into the senior team.”
Longmire identified seasoned campaigners Ryan O’Keefe and Lewis Roberts-Thomson, as well as Gary Rohan, Dean Towers, Toby Nankervis, Dan Robinson and Shane Biggs, as other players who had also impressed in the NEAFL over the last few weeks.
“I guess all of those guys have been playing consistently well, as well as Toby Nankervis is probably another one in the ruck who has been playing quite well,” he said.
“We feel as though that next group of players down have been pretty good, with guys like Dan Robinson and Shane Biggs, whilst on the rookie list, have been consistently playing well in our reserves.
“We feel that next level down has been really good and we’ve been pleased with the development of those players and they’re getting better each week.
“They’ll need to continue to improve, because there is no doubt what happens in the back half of the year is that they will get opportunities and we need to ensure we have as many players in form right across our list of 45 players as we possibly can.”
Re-visit sydneyswans.com.au tomorrow for the second part of John Longmire's bye week chat with SwansTV
