MELBOURNE'S prized top-three draftee Luke Jackson has suffered a hamstring setback and will miss Saturday's crunch match against Collingwood.
The Demons' ruck stocks were already under siege, with triple All-Australian Max Gawn dealing with a tear behind his left shoulder and a posterior cruciate ligament issue.
THE FULL INJURY LIST Who is racing the clock?
Melbourne has confirmed Jackson's injury, but is yet to reveal the seriousness of it.
The West Australian teenager ended the club's four-year drought without a NAB AFL Rising Star nomination in round 10.
Gawn sat out of the Dees' 57-point victory over North Melbourne on Saturday night and is racing the clock to be fit to face Brodie Grundy and the Magpies.
If neither Jackson nor Gawn is available, Melbourne is almost certain to turn to ex-Kangaroo Braydon Preuss, who hasn't been sighted at senior level this year after seven appearances last season.
Preuss has spent time on the sidelines himself in 2020, battling separate knee and Achilles injuries.
The Demons have won four of their past six outings to climb into 10th place, with dates ahead against fellow finals contenders Collingwood and the Western Bulldogs to come.
More to come
