IZAK Rankine's wait for a senior debut will continue, with Gold Coast ruling the promising young star out of round two as he continues his return from a series of frustrating hamstring injuries.
Rankine missed the entirety of his maiden AFL campaign with a hamstring problem, before being ruled out of round one earlier this year due to another minor setback.
But while the former No.3 NAB AFL Draft pick hasn't endured another issue, the Suns have confirmed he has not yet done enough to prove his fitness ahead of the side's round two clash with the Eagles on Saturday night.
"He's getting closer, there's no doubt," Gold Coast football boss Jon Haines said in a statement.
"He hasn't quite hit his speed markers just yet. It's been a really short escalation over the last three or four weeks and we want to set him up for a sustained run at it.
"He'll be a couple of weeks away and we'll make sure that we can hit those speed markers over the coming weeks and set him up for a really consistent year."
Rankine was one of the most talented prospects coming out of the 2018 draft pool, kicking 15 goals from 10 senior SANFL games in his final year of junior footy.
