West Coast defender Rhett Bazzo has undergone surgery after yet another injury blow for the luckless Eagle.

The 21-year-old broke his right foot in an “innocuous incident” while training during the club’s festive period break and did not return as pre-season training resumed on Thursday.

The club confirmed Bazzo had gone under the knife to repair the fracture and is currently in a moon boot and will progress his workload over the coming weeks.

West Coast football boss Gavin Bell said the club hoped to have the defender back before round one.

“It’s really unfortunate for Rhett to have sustained the foot injury from a relatively innocuous incident while completing some training in the early stages of the players’ Christmas break,” he said in a statement.

“It is difficult to provide an exact timeframe for his return at this stage, but club medical staff will monitor Rhett’s progress and advance his training program as he hits certain markers.

“Our goal is for Rhett to be available for the start of the season.”

The latest incident marks yet another setback for the promising youngster, who missed more than a year of football with a significant groin injury.

Bazzo made his long-awaited AFL return in the final game of the 2024 season against Geelong. That followed a horror 18 months for the Swan Districts product, who tragically lost his mother in a boating accident in January 2023.

The young gun has bide his time in blue and gold behind champion pair Jeremy McGovern and Tom Barrass, as well as tall defender Harry Edwards.

Barrass’ move to Hawthorn during the trade period had improved Bazzo’s chances of breaking into the 22 under new coach Andrew McQualter after 21 games across his first three seasons.