NORTH Melbourne forward Mason Wood's stop-start career could be on hold again, with another soft-tissue complaint prematurely ending his night in the VFL on Saturday.
Wood was the Roos' only unforced omission from their 82-point season-opening defeat to Fremantle, where he had just eight disposals and failed to score.
He spent the past fortnight in the VFL and started Saturday night's clash with Werribee in promising fashion, with seven touches and three shots at goal, all of which were behinds.
However, Wood came off late in the second term and reported calf 'awareness' to North's medical staff, but was confident he had not strained the muscle, although he is likely to undergo a scan.
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The 25-year-old sat out the rest of the game as a precautionary measure and unless there's a more negative diagnosis to come, he could yet play next week.
His season ended early in 2017 because of a calf problem, while hamstring and knee issues also hampered him in the past three years.
Wood is a prodigious talent and athletically gifted for someone who stands 192cm but has played only 40 matches in seven seasons since the Kangas selected him at No.41 in the 2012 draft.
Besides injury, inconsistent form has prevented him from truly making his mark – and his 13 games and 22 goals last year remain his highest tallies in both categories in any one campaign.
Wood's potential was highlighted in a brilliant four-goal display against Sydney in round seven last season.
He kicked the contest's first goal but, more importantly, also the last one to give the Kangaroos the lead for good inside the last three minutes after weaving through a sea of Swans defenders.
North needs him more than ever to establish himself alongside Ben Brown, with Jarrad Waite retiring at the end of last season and ruckman Tom Campbell serving as the other tall forward.
Meanwhile, fellow injury-prone forward Taylor Garner sat out a second straight VFL game, this time because of a quad problem, after a groin complaint sidelined him last week.
Garner was the Roos' first pick, No.15 overall, in that same 2012 draft, but his 34 matches since are even fewer than Wood's, with repeat hamstring injuries cursing his career to date.
Match-day emergency Paul Ahern and first-year forward Curtis Taylor (illness) also didn't play in the VFL, ahead of Sunday's must-win game against Hawthorn at the MCG.
In better news, Nathan Hrovat gathered 26 possessions and laid seven tackles, defender Tom Murphy had 21 touches and developing key forward Nick Larkey kicked 3.3 with seven marks.
