Dean Solomon will be sidelined for the next eight weeks after rupturing a tendon in his right hand at training this morning. Solomon will have surgery tomorrow morning to repair the damage. Solomon sustained the injury after the finger got caught in the jumper of a teammate during a tackling drill. The injury is the same as that suffered by Matthew Lloyd in the Round 6 clash against Fremantle in 2002.

The injury is a bitter blow to Solomon who was one of the stars of the Bombers' intra-club match at Optus Oval on Monday. It adds to his recent run of injuries - a knee reconstruction saw him miss all of 2002 and he was dogged by osteitis pubis for much of last season.