The Allansford onballer was among injury casualties from the Cats' defeat to Kolora-Noorat a fortnight ago. He used last weekend’s mid-season bye to rest and is certain to miss the trip to Panmure on Saturday. A best-case scenario has him in action against Deakin University in round 14.

“I won’t play this week and maybe not the following week but we’ll see how we go. The bye has been really helpful,” Mills said.

“I’ve been to the physio a couple of times and he’s pretty confident it’s just ligament damage. Just needs rest and stretches to get right, it’s nothing structural or long-term.”

Mills, 29, said he feared the worst when he sustained the injury in a contest during the third term at Noorat Recreation Reserve.

“The first thing I did when it happened was to check my leg was still straight, because he came across my leg.”

He was unable to put weight on the ankle – his right – and spent last week in a moon boot. “I was pretty happy when the physio (Toby Pettigrew) said we won’t worry about scans,” he said.

Mills said he wanted to play against the Sharks, keen to avoid losing conditioning in the run towards finals.

“Because of the bye, if I miss that game that’d be three weeks in a row. You don’t want to miss too many and lose that match fitness,” he said.