Cats coach Chris Scott says Bailey Smith’s absence from this match was an easy call as he was not fit enough to board the flight to Perth.
The third-placed Cats face the first-placed Dockers tonight without star midfielder Smith and veteran defender Tom Stewart, who is out with concussion.
“I’m not sure how he’s feeling (right now). He’s been sick, so he wasn’t well enough to get on the plane yesterday (Wednesday), so that made our decision easier,” Scott told Kayo Sports.
“We talk about this more and more. Maybe 20 years ago you would only play if you felt sick but now we have no desire to play guys who are less than what I would consider fit enough to play.
“It will be a good test to play without Bailey and Tom (Stewart) against the best team in the game at the moment but we will be up for the challenge.”
