COLLINGWOOD teenager Reef McInnes will undergo a shoulder reconstruction and miss the rest of the season after dislocating his shoulder in Sunday's four-point win over Hawthorn at the MCG.
The 19-year-old was a late inclusion after star forward Jamie Elliott woke up sick on Saturday before being ruled out on the morning of the game.
McInnes suffered the injury in the dying seconds of the third quarter following a collision with Hawthorn small forward Dylan Moore in a marking contest, not long after he took a dazzling one-handed grab in the same area of the ground.
The Victorian underwent scans on Monday and will go under the knife later this week, joining off-season recruit Nathan Kreuger who has also been ruled out for the rest of the season with the same injury.
McInnes, who was taken at pick No. 23 in the 2020 NAB AFL Draft, made his debut against Geelong in round three and played five games in a row before being recalled on Sunday.
After only just returning from shoulder surgery himself, Elliott is expected to face Melbourne at the MCG on Queen's Birthday Monday.
Mobile forward Ash Johnson is on track to return from a hamstring injury against the Casey Demons this weekend after missing the past couple of months after injuring the tendon just when he was on the cusp of senior selection.
Key defender Charlie Dean is expected to be available after the bye next weekend following a slow build back up from a stress fracture in his foot.
MEDICAL ROOM Check out the full injury list
Finlay Macrae, Trent Bianco, Caleb Poulter and Callum Brown all pressed their cases for another opportunity at senior level in the VFL loss to the Gold Coast Suns at the AIA Centre on Sunday, but it might be difficult to make too many changes to a Collingwood side that has won three on the trot for the first time since 2019.