RICHMOND is set to be without defender Bachar Houli for as long as 10 weeks after having wrist surgery, while midfielder Kamdyn McIntosh is set to miss three months after going under the knife himself.

Houli, 28, suffered the injury in a training mishap last Thursday with indications from the outset that it was serious. While the surgery went smoothly, those initial fears were confirmed by the Tigers.

McIntosh had surgery on his ankle after injuring it during the same session and will miss at least 12 weeks.

Tigers football boss Dan Richardson described both injuries as “unlucky” but backed both to return in the back-end of the season.

“It’s unlucky for both Bachar and Kamdyn to both sustain injuries that will sideline them for a period of time, they’re both important players at our football club,” Richardson said

“They’re both diligent and determined players and will commence their injury rehab later this week, and we expect them to be able to make an on-field contribution later this season.

“We had an early indication that Bachar’s injury would see him miss a fair bit of football, but we needed to seek clarification from his surgeon after his operation on the extent of the injury.”

media_camera Bachar Houli had wrist surgery on Monday. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

Houli has missed just two games since moving to Richmond from Essendon at the end of 2010, but teammate Brett Deledio is confident his absence — which could be as long as two months — can be well-covered.

“We’ve been told (it could be) anywhere from six to eight weeks, so hopefully he’s back sooner than that,” the vice-captain said.

“He’ll be making a speedy recovery and will hopefully get back.

“Corey Ellis has played every game this year and is playing some pretty handy footy and growing with every game he plays.

“Bachar’s a great player and we’ll welcome him back when he’s ready but we’re covering him OK.”

Tigers duo Daniel Rioli and Chris Yarran have both been granted leave this week to attend to family matters interstate.

Yarran has returned to Western Australia while Rioli has returned to the Northern Territory to deal with a family illness, but the club is hopeful he will be available to face the Dockers.

media_camera Daniel Rioli Rioli has returned to the Northern Territory to attend to a family matter. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

Skipper Trent Cotchin — who has missed the last two games after having surgery on a broken cheekbone — trained in a helmet at Punt Road on Tuesday and is likely to make his return against Fremantle on Saturday night.

“He should be back and that’s great for us,” Deledio said.

“He’s a fantastic leader and a pretty handy player as well.”

As for whether he wears the helmet, Deledio said he’s barracking for it.

“I’m telling him it looks good on him,” he said.

Richmond might be coming off a thrilling one-point win, but Deledio insisted the team isn’t getting caught up in any hype.

“We fully understand where we sit at the moment — we’ve got a lot of work to do,” he said.

“Our focus is primarily on Fremantle this weekend. We tend to play pretty well over there in Perth — we travel well and will hopefully get another win on the board.

“(They’re a) bit similar to us — a slow start (to the season) but hopefully it stays slow for them.”