GEELONG rookie James Parsons will be sidelined for eight weeks after breaking his left foot in an unlucky accident.

Parsons suffered the injury when he landed awkwardly while on a short break in Yarrawonga over the weekend.

It was unfortunate timing for Parsons who had impressed in the pre-season after playing 16 VFL games in his first season as rookie.

He had experienced stress fractures in his foot when playing TAC Cup.

Cats football manager Steve Hocking said he was confident Parsons would recover as quickly as possible.

"While it’s a setback, all James now has to do is focus on his recovery and rehab process in order to take part in the beginning of the VFL season," Hocking said.

Geelong had better news in relation to new ruckman, Ryan Abbott who suffered a minor fracture at training just before Christmas.

Abbott, 25, was a mature aged draft selection, plucked from Grovedale in the local Geelong competition after impressive performances with the Geelong VFL team.