The Crows are aiming for Lynch to return from a calf injury in next week's round 19 encounter with Carlton at the MCG. The link-up forward hasn't played since injuring the intramuscular tendon in his left calf in the warm-up before the round 12 game with Greater Western Sydney in early June. Lynch travelled to the Gold Coast with the team last week, completing the main training session and running 12km on the weekend. Ellis-Yolmen could also return against the Blues as he recovers from a low-level stress reaction to his right fibula sustained in round 15. However, both might need a game in the reserves before being considered for the senior side. Wilson suffered a head knock in the first quarter of the Crows' SANFL game against Port Adelaide last weekend and will need to pass concussion tests this week, while McHenry is aiming to return from a lower back injury. McAdam had hamstring soreness after a training session last week and won't play this weekend. - Lee Gaskin

McCluggage and Hipwood were both with the rehab group at Tuesday's training session and will need to pass fitness tests to play North Melbourne on Saturday night. Cutler is expected to return through the NEAFL. - Michael Whiting 

The Blues will give McGovern as long as he needs to get himself into shape after he was managed last week. Don't expect him back against the Suns. Weitering and Stocker should feature at some level this week, though Cuningham is another week away due to a lingering knee issue. - Riley Beveridge

Pendlebury is hopeful but probably unlikely to lead the Magpies against Greater Western Sydney at Giants Stadium on Saturday, just seven days after surgery. Moore will miss an undetermined number of games with a "minor" hamstring injury, and Aish is sore, but Howe only needs to get through training to be passed fit. Varcoe, Lynch, Madgen and Tohill will undergo fitness tests but Reid is still some time away. Langdon is making inroads, Murphy's recovery from ankle and now back issues has also been slow, and Kelly is also being managed conservatively. Stephenson will be available at finals time while Wells will race the clock to return before season's end. But the campaign seems over for veterans Dunn and Beams, with the latter now taking indefinite leave to deal with his mental issues. - Ben Collins

Losing Hurley, potentially for the rest of the season, is a massive blow for the Bombers. They will be hoping Ambrose is available for the clash after recovering well from a quad strain he suffered in the warm-up before the Bombers beat GWS three weeks ago. Heppell is the watch this week as he recovers from a foot injury that has ruled him out of the last two games. The skipper will need to get through training to be available for Friday night's clash with Adelaide. - Callum Twomey

Hogan won't return from a month lay-off against Sydney on Saturday night after pulling up sore from training. Veteran ruckman Sandilands was managed from the trip to Launceston following his first game in a year but hopes to return against the Swans.  - Travis King

Murdoch was a late withdrawal from the NEAFL last weekend and will now miss another match with a quad problem. Rankine's hip must be a concern. Originally the Suns said it was "minor" after niggling it in his only NEAFL match three weeks ago and now he's listed as a TBC. - Michael Whiting

Shane Mumford is available to face Collingwood in Saturday's crucial clash at Giants Stadium after missing the past two games. Coniglio had successful surgery on Tuesday morning and will likely only play again this year if his rehabilitation goes perfectly, and the Giants can play multiple finals. Langdon had surgery on a syndesmosis issue late last week and is in the same boat as Coniglio, while in further bad news, Flynn tore his ACL in the NEAFL last week. - Adam Curley

Gunston is set to return after a week off to rest the niggles he's dealt with for some time, while Ceglar also sat out of the VFL at the weekend. The news isn't so good for promising Hawks midfielder Jones, who's won 25 possessions or more three times in the past month in the VFL. He sustained a PCL injury – the same setback that sidelined Grant Birchall for so long – playing for Box Hill and will miss the rest of the season. Scrimshaw, who last played in round 10, and Jones are at least another fortnight away. There was no update on Harry Morrison or Jackson Ross. Chad Wingard (hamstring) and Changkuoth Jiath (broken jaw) resumed in the AFL and VFL last week, respectively. - Marc McGowan

Both Smith and Weideman need to get through tests in order to complete their recoveries from calf injuries. Hore has successfully had surgery on his collarbone and has returned to running, but remains several weeks away. Melksham is set to make his long-awaited return to training next week; if he is fit to play in three weeks as listed by the club, it will mark 13 weeks since fracturing his foot. He was originally calculated to miss four to six weeks. – Sarah Black

McDonald's season is over after sustaining a fracture near his right ankle. Higgins is pushing to return after almost six weeks out and a call will be made later in the week on his readiness. Wood was a late withdrawal in round 17 and is expected to be fit, while club medicos believe Larkey's ongoing heart-related issue is only minor. - Marc McGowan

Ebert sustained a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his knee in the Power's loss to Brisbane. The Power haven't released a timeline for his return, but he's likely to miss several weeks. It's a similar scenario for Burton after the defender injured his right hamstring. He's expected to miss at least a month. Co-captain Wines fractured his left thumb in the opening quarter of the Power's loss to Brisbane. He played out the game, but is in doubt to face Richmond at the MCG on Saturday. Houston is expected to recover from illness in time to take on the Tigers after he was a late scratching from the side that lost to the Lions. Frampton accepted a two-game suspension for a crude hit on Adelaide midfielder Patrick Wilson that left him concussed in last weekend's SANFL game in Port Pirie. McKenzie suffered back spasms in the same game, and will be assessed this week. - Lee Gaskin

Higgins may miss the rest of the season after being diagnosed with bleeding on the brain. First-choice ruck Nankervis is a definite chance to take on Port Adelaide this weekend. Balta, Baker and Weller are also tests, but less likely to play than Nankervis. – Sarah Black.

The Saints say Hannebery will receive 'ongoing assessment' as he struggles to overcome a hamstring issue. Webster has been plagued by a back issue in recent weeks while Phillips will be eyeing off a VFL return against Footscray on Sunday. - Dinny Navaratnam

Cunningham pulled up sore after the loss to Carlton and will miss at least a couple of games. McVeigh strained his calf in his return to the field from a hamstring injury last week in a big blow for the veteran, while Cameron re-injured his quad at training last week. Franklin remains at least three weeks away, while Sinclair is progressing slowly from his dislocated shoulder. Naismith is on track to play in round 19 at NEAFL level. - Adam Curley

As if the one-point loss to Collingwood wasn't tough enough to take, Naitanui's syndesmosis injury and Cripps' month-long groin issue has rubbed salt into the wounds. Injuries to key personnel are starting to pile up at the wrong time, with concerns over veteran spearhead Josh Kennedy's battle-scarred body as well, while young forward Venables has been ruled out for the year after copping a bad concussion in round nine. - Travis King

Bontempelli is in doubt for this week after injuring one of the ligaments in his ankle, and McLean is going to miss a few weeks after hurting his hamstring. Liberatore and Daniel will be touch and go this weekend, but it's worse news for Wallis, who will require ankle surgery. - Josh Schonafinger