Essendon forward, Travis Colyer, had surgery on his foot yesterday after it failed to respond so conservative management.

High-Performance Manager, Justin Crow, said Colyer’s time on the sideline will become clearer in the coming weeks.

“Travis has had a painful sesamoid injury which unfortunately has not responded to conservative management,” Crow said.

“He underwent surgery yesterday in order to remove the small bone (sesamoid) underneath his foot.”

“Once Travis is reviewed by the surgeon, his recovery timeframe will become clearer, however typically we would expect him to be unavailable to play for a period of 12 weeks.”

It comes as a blow to Colyer who enjoyed his most consistent season in 2017 managing to play 22 games, a career high. Colyer average 15 disposals and kicked 12 goals as he displayed his trademark dash across the field.