MELBOURNE fears forward Jake Melksham has suffered a serious knee injury after being hurt in the Demons' win over Sydney.
Melksham limped to the bench and was substituted in the third quarter of Melbourne's 21-point victory, which denied the Swans a home final.
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Dees coach Simon Goodwin said the club "fear the worst" for Melksham, who has become an important part of its forward line in recent weeks.
"We fear the worst, but we hope for the best," Goodwin said.
"Looking at an ACL, which is really sad for 'Melky'. It takes a really big dent in the day.
"I've coached Jake for a long time, 14 years, and he's just craving the opportunity to play in a successful team in finals footy.
"We hope that'll be the case, but we'll just have to wait and see."
Melksham has played 107 matches for Melbourne since switching from Essendon, but missed selection in the finals teams that went on to win the 2021 premiership.
The 31-year-old has been a regular in the Demons' line-up since round 16 this year but now looks set to be sidelined for the finals.
Bayley Fritsch kicked five goals for Melbourne against Sydney in his return from a foot injury.
Errol Gulden looked set to propel the Swans to a critical win as the young gun gathered 42 disposals and kicked two stunning goals, but the Demons midfield had too many answers.
"He did a great job, he's a very good player," Swans coach John Longmire said on Gulden's performance.
"I thought we did a good job in our midfield against their midfield. They've got a very talented midfield and I thought our boys did a really good job there for a fair bit of the game.
"But they got going the last quarter and a bit, although Errol had his foot to the floor the whole game. He was terrific."
