Collingwood superstar Nick Daicos is set to miss up to six weeks with a knee injury.
The 20-year-old copped a hairline fracture in his right knee joint during Saturday’s loss to Hawthorn after being collected in a marking contest.
The Brownlow Medal favourite is now set to miss the rest of the home and away season and the start of the club’s finals campaign.
Collingwood GM of Football Graham Wright says Daicos won’t require surgery but will need time to heal.
Wright also confirmed that defender Nathan Murphy suffered a low-grade syndesmosis injury which will see him miss two to three weeks.
“We are disappointed for both Nathan and Nick who will unfortunately miss games through injury for an extended period,” Wright said via a statement.
“Both players underwent scans after our game last night which confirmed Nathan suffered a low-grade syndesmosis injury in his right ankle and is expected to miss the next two to three weeks, while Nick has a hairline fracture in the lateral tibial plateau of the right knee joint.
“Nick has been seen by a specialist knee surgeon this morning and, while fortunately this does not require an operation, it will need time to heal before he returns to football. At this stage, the expected timeframe for Nick is six weeks.
“Both Nathan and Nick have played important roles this season, they are consummate professionals and will do all they can to progress through their rehab to make themselves available and we will support them through that recovery.”
Collingwood next face Geelong in a huge Friday night clash at the MCG.