Star Sydney Swans midfielder Luke Parker's season is likely over after he suffered a fractured fibula in his side's 11-point win over Collingwood at the SCG on Friday night.
Parker will have scans on Saturday to check for ligament damage after the tough onballer had his right leg twisted awkwardly in a tackle in the final quarter against the Magpies, and had to be taken from the ground on a stretcher.
With the Swans fighting for a top-four spot and the double chance in this year's finals, the loss of their reigning club champion is a bitter blow.
"He's got a fractured fibula, which is the smaller bone in the lower leg, so he's having another scan today just to check out his ankle ligament damage – things like syndesmosis and what not," coach John Longmire told ABC Grandstand on Saturday.
"So we're not quite sure what that result will come until later on today.
"But the initial diagnosis is a fractured fibula so that's probably, if he has an operation, a four-week best-case scenario if there's no other damage. We don't know if there's any other damage."
Asked if the Swans had given up on getting Parker back for finals, Longmire said: "Not just yet, but we'll see how the day pans out."
Coach John Longmire said his team is hurting.
"They feel for him, he's in our leadership group, he's 22, he's a best and fairest winner, he's a very important player to us," Longmire said.
"Unfortunately he won't be with us now as far as what we do in the back end of the year, we suspect.
"We just had one of those nights. It started in our reserves (when) we lost two of our better midfielders, one with a broken collarbone and one with concussion, and then I think three or four in the seniors as the game went on."
As well as the loss of Parker, the Swans had Jeremy Laidler subbed out of the game at half time with a hamstring strain, while speedsters Gary Rohan (knee) and Isaac Heeney (head knock) were also left feeling worse for wear.
MATCH REPORT: Swans defeat Magpies in gutsy 11-point win
The Pies seriously challenged the home side and led by as much as nine points in the third quarter, but the Swans kicked five goals to two in the last term, and Longmire praised his side's resilience.
"It was probably right up there with one of our better wins as far as everything going against us, we weren't playing super footy," Longmire said.
"At one stage there in the last quarter we had Parker down, we had Heeney on the bench sore, I think Gary Rohan's knee was sore and we'd already lost Laidler.
"We found a way in the end to get there and win, which was a super effort."
Rohan returned after missing five games with a hamstring injury, and sparked the Swans with two goals in the third quarter.
The 24-year-old only had seven possessions for the night, but his relentless tackling and harassing of the Collingwood defenders was one of the major reasons behind the Swans win.
"He's a very important player; we've missed him, his pressure is at a very high level now, and his offensive stuff is developing," Longmire said.
"He hurt his knee in the first quarter and was pretty sore, and his third quarter when he kicked a couple was pretty special to come back and provide an avenue up there.
"We think that it's blokes like Gary Rohan and Isaac Heeney and Tommy Mitchell and Brandon Jack, all played pretty important roles for us tonight as young kids.
"As well as our senior boys, it was good to see those blokes really contribute.
"They're clearly going to have some pretty big roles for us, all those boys, and we need them."