NORTH Melbourne midfielder Ben Jacobs needs surgery and will miss up to eight weeks after he again broke the fifth metatarsal in his right foot.
It is the same injury that limited him to just seven games last season.
Jacobs, 25, missed three months of football in 2016 after he had the foot operated on. He returned for one VFL game late in the year but then sat out the rest of the season.
It adds to a growing casualty list at the Kangaroos. Forward Mason Wood won't be available for a similar time frame after he strained his hamstring in the same training session as Jacobs was injured last Friday.
Jacobs had been managed during the pre-season, with the club taking a cautious approach after he hurt himself last year.
Ben Brown and Majak Daw had interrupted preparations after knee surgery, with Daw featuring in the JLT Community Series win against Hawthorn on Sunday.
Brown is expected to be unavailable until North's final pre-season game versus Greater Western Sydney on Friday, March 10.
Todd Goldstein (ankle), Scott Thompson (adductor) and Jy Simpkin (leg) are among the others who had been kept out of the main group at different stages but all three lined up against the Hawks.
North Melbourne's home-and-away campaign begins against West Coast at Etihad Stadium on Sunday, March 26.
