ADELAIDE midfielder Brad Crouch won't have surgery on his troublesome groin at this stage, but it remains an option if he doesn't improve.
Reports surfaced on Monday that Crouch was to have season-ending surgery, but the 24-year-old said that wasn't accurate.
Crouch was originally due back between round six and eight, however he has had a setback in his recovery.
Meanwhile, skipper Taylor Walker – who has already missed two games this season with a foot injury and a hamstring issue – is in doubt for Friday night's clash with the Western Bulldogs at Adelaide Oval, while forward Mitch McGovern is out for eight weeks with a high ankle sprain.
Crouch will continue with strength exercises to give himself the best chance of playing this season.
"I'm not going under the knife, not at the moment anyway," Crouch told Adelaide radio station FIVEaa on Tuesday afternoon.
"I've been on a rehab program for a while and it's not going as well as I what I wanted it go, so I've still had a little soreness around my groins and I'm pretty slow at the moment.
"I've seen a specialist over the last week or two, also seen a surgeon and we've opted to not go for the surgery at this time.
"I want to focus on keep doing the strengthening exercises I've been doing and doing what the football club and the physios and the experts want me to do, that's all I can do at this stage.
"Hopefully, I can get back later on this year."
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Crouch said he probably had "four or five different opinions" and had been told surgery might not be the best course of action.
"A lot of the experts think surgery with groin injuries isn't the best thing to do, but when it's been a problem for a long period of time, you've got to weigh that up," he said.
"We'll look at it then, but even then, it might not be that option.
"At times, I ran for two or three weeks and felt really good, and then I've run at a certain speed, and it's got really sore.
"Kicking's a big thing with your pelvis. When I kick at times, it's been sore.
"That's the frustrating thing, there's a whole lot of different factors that go into it."
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Injuries have restricted Crouch to just 61 games since making his Crows debut in 2013.
Crouch missed the entire 2015 season with a foot injury.
But he was able to remain on the park last year, playing 20 games and averaging 28 disposals to be a valuable cog of the Crows' midfield.
Meanwhile, Walker injured his back and glute in the Crows' five-point loss to Port Adelaide last Saturday night, while McGovern copped a heavy knock with teammate Richard Douglas in the dying stages of the match.
It was Walker's first game back after missing the round seven clash against Carlton.
"My back and glute have been causing me a bit of stiffness and I was getting a bit of referred pain," Walker told Triple M radio on Tuesday morning.
"I will have to get through the main session tomorrow."
Kyle Hartigan, Riley Knight, Alex Keath, Sam Gibson and Curtly Hampton could be available to return from injury this week.
Wayne Milera is at least another week away with a hamstring injury.
