Heading into Round 10, the competition will stop and commemorate the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture to our game.
But there is still plenty of football that should excite fans.
Collingwood's management last week could see a host of their stars return for Saturday's clash against Adelaide.
Geelong's defence could be bolstered by a premiership duo, while a Fremantle forward will miss up to the next two months.
Here's all the latest injury news ahead of Round 10.
Giant quartet a "test"
GWS is hopeful Toby Bedford (eye), Toby Greene (ankle), Darcy Jones (knee) and Stephen Coniglio (glute) will put their hand up for selection this week against Fremantle.
Bedford suffered an eye injury against the Swans and missed the win against Geelong. Jones was also absent from the victory but is expected to overcome knee soreness.
Greene rolled his ankle against the Cats but played through it, and will be given until the last minute to prove his fitness.
Coniglio will need to complete a full week of training.
Dynamic forward Jake Stringer's soft-tissue injuries reared their ugly head, and will miss up to a month with a hamstring injury he sustained on the weekend.
Swans skipper a chance
Sydney captain Callum Mills is on track to return to the senior side soon, after completing two weeks of team skills.
Mills hasn't played in 2025 and will be a welcome return.
Key forward Joel Amartey has a chance to face Carlton after passing max velocity running last week.
Sore Blue cleared
Mitch McGovern has been cleared to play after he copped a heavy bump in the win against St Kilda.
Scans cleared McGovern of any structural damage, but he should be available for Round 10.
Elsewhere, the Blyes will be without Blake Acres (Round 11), Lachie Cowan (Round 13), Lachie Fogarty (Round 11) and Zac Williams (Round 11) for the time being.
Alex Cincotta has overcome his hip injury to be available for selection, but could return through the VFL.
Collingwood to be tested as skipper, star to miss
Darcy Moore (shoulder) and Jordan De Goey (achilles) will miss Saturday's Round 10 clash against Adelaide.
Moore hurt his shoulder against Fremantle, suffering a moderate AC joint sprain. As for De Goey, he will be assessed throughout the week, but has commenced a rehab program.
Pressure forward Lachie Schultz will miss as he enters concussion protocols after suffering a heavy knock.
The Pies will regain Scott Pendlebury and Brayden Maynard, while Brody Mihocek (abdomen) is a chance to return.
Saint sidelined for lengthy period
A late hamstring injury to Dougal Howard will rule him out for at least six weeks.
The setback comes just weeks after Howard made his return to play in Round 8 following a pre-season shoulder injury that required surgery.
"This is really disappointing news for Dougal," EGM of Football David Misson said.
"He'd worked incredibly hard to get his body right after a long rehab from shoulder surgery, so to cop a hamstring injury in the final two minutes of the game is extremely unfortunate.
"While it's definitely a frustrating setback, we know Dougal will approach this rehab block with the same level of professionalism and intent he's shown throughout his career."
Mason Wood is expected to exit concussion protocols, as small forward Dan Butler has overcome an Achilles injury to be in line for a return.
Demons defender available for selection
Jake Lever will play in the VFL after missing the past six weeks with an ankle injury.
"Jake's had a really positive training block," AFL High Performance Manager Selwyn Griffith said.
"He's integrated back into full training and will return on some modified minutes through the VFL this weekend.
"It's been a power of work from Jake over the last couple of weeks, and he's in a really good spot."
Fellow veteran Jake Melksham will also be available after missing the Hawthorn game with general soreness.
"Jake just had a bit of general soreness coming out of our Perth travel," Griffith said.
"He trained really strongly over the weekend and was back in full training today, and will train fully at the end of the week to be available."
Harrison Petty and Ricky Mentha Jr are listed as tests, while hard-nosed midfielder Jack Viney is another week away.
Lion sidelined
Brisbane midfielder Jarrod Berry will miss Round 10 against Melbourne as he enters concussion protocols.
Berry, who was subbed out during the first quarter of the weekend's match against North Melbourne.
Bruce Reville is available for selection after overcoming a hamstring injury while depth forward Brandon Ryan was sent for facial surgery after an incident in the VFL, and will miss at least a month.
Dogs mid to miss as forward cleared of
Western Bulldogs midfielder Adam Treloar will miss this week against Essendon after it was revealed he suffered some tightness in his ankle.
Treloar returned from a lengthy hamstring issue but will be absent once again.
"Scans cleared him of any issues relating to the troublesome calf muscle that impacted the early part of his season, however we will take a conservative approach with Adam understanding his lack of game conditioning and the fact that we have a long part of the season remaining," Head of Sports Medicine Chris Bell said.
"He won't play this week against Essendon, and we will look to accurately confirm his return-to-play plan across this week."
Forward Laitham Vandermeer was subbed from the Gold Coast game with a calf complaint, but scans cleared him of any serious issue.
All-Australian Bomber to return in reserves
Darcy Parish will feature in the VFL next weekend after he was cleared of a persistent calf injury.
Parish hasn't been seen in 2025, and hasn't played a full season since his 2021 All-Australian season.
Essendon's reserves have a bye this weekend, so the 27-year-old will return the week after.
Jade Gresham is another week away with an adductor injury.
Richmond defender's Short turnaround
The Tigers are expecting dashing defender Jayden Short to feature in Round 10 after missing the West Coast win.
Short was pulled from the game with knee soreness.
"Shorty complained with a bit of knee soreness in the warm-up," High Performance Manager Ben Serpell said.
"We are confident that he is going to be available for training this week, and there isn't that much to that knee at the moment."
Fellow defender Nathan Broad is also likely to play after dislocating his finger during the game.
Forward Mykelti Lefau successfully returned from an ACL injury he sustained in Round 12 last year, and could be available for selection this week.
Young defender Josh Gibcus has also been given a timeline on his return, with the club saying 7-10 weeks.
Roo tall nearing return following long lay-off
North Melbourne tall Callum Coleman-Jones is nearing a return after rupturing his Achilles over a year ago.
Coleman-Jones was last seen in the 2024 Good Friday clash, but isn't far from featuring on a football field.
"Callum is on the cusp of returning, which is exciting after a long road of hard work," North Melbourne head of performance Kevin White said.
"We have had a great four-week block of heavy loading, which should set him up well for his return to play next week."
Ruckman Brynn Teakle will need to pass a fitness test this week to feature in the VFL, after overcoming a plantar fascia issue which kept him out of Saturday's VFL clash with Brisbane at Arden St Oval.
Two available, two managed for travelling Hawks
Hawthorn is hopeful Jack Scrimshaw (concussion) and Cam Mackenzie (hand) will pass fitness tests to return to the senior side to take on Gold Coast in Darwin.
Scrimshaw missed the past two games whilst in concussion protocols, and has trained solidly over the weekend.
Mackenzie has been involved with the main training and "was able to do some ball handling and some kicking".
However, veteran Luke Breust (back), Jack Gunston (managed) and Lloyd Meek (managed) will miss the Suns clash.
"Jack Gunston and Lloyd Meek have had quite big workloads already in the season," Hawks High Performance Manager Peter Burge said.
"Lloyd's played in every game, and Jack has played in all but two.
"We did have some plans in place working back a couple of weeks as to what this would look like, and given the situation and where we are and how they are, more importantly, we've taken the opportunity to manage them this week.
"So they're still back in Melbourne doing a managed program. We'll prepare them for the game against Brisbane next week."
Breust will be out for at least one week, but could be two.
Crows forward nears selection
Adelaide small Lachlan Murphy is progressing well from a hamstring tendon injury after missing the Showdown against Port Adelaide.
Murphy isn't expected to be available for Saturday's clash against Collingwood, but could be in line to return in Round 11.
"Lachy had a mild hamstring tendon irritation, he'll do a couple of rehab sessions this week with the likelihood of returning to play next week," Crows Head of Physiotherapy Tim Cook said.
Key defender Nick Murray (knee) and midfielder Matt Crouch (hip) are continuing their rehab, but will miss up to a month.
"Nick is two weeks post-arthroscopy and his knee is progressing really well," Cook said
"Rehab is going well in the gym, and he will do some on-ground preparation this week with a likely return to on-ground running next week."
Gold Coast youngsters to miss Darwin clash
Midfielder Will Graham and forward Jake Rogers have returned to the Gold Coast after sustaining injury in last week's win over the Western Bulldogs.
Graham was downed by a shoulder injury in the final quarter, while Rogers suffered an ankle injury.
"Will injured his shoulder in a contest late in the game against the Bulldogs, and he will be seeing a specialist on the Gold Coast this week to determine whether surgery is indicated," Suns Head Physiotherapist Lindsay Bull said.
"Likewise, Jake has also returned home, and we will get a clearer picture on the next steps for his recovery after advice from a specialist this week."
In more positive news, draftee Leo Lombard has returned to full training after a pre-season shoulder injury wiped him out of the first 10 weeks of the season.
Cats cavalry set to return
Geelong's defence is set to be bolstered by the return of Tom Stewart (knee) and Lawson Humphries (concussion) for their trip to South Australia.
The pair missed Sunday's clash at GMHBA Stadium through injury, but will be welcomed back for Saturday's game against the Power, pending they tick off all the boxes.
Fellow backman Jack Henry is also in the mix to return from a hamstring strain he suffered in Round 4, but could be held off for another week in anticipation of the Western Bulldogs match-up in Round 11.
Veteran ruckman Rhys Stanley is likely to be available next week as he recovers from a hamstring issue.
Narkle's sparkle downed by injury
Fremantle forward Quinton Narkle will miss the next two months of football after sustaining a knee injury in the WAFL over the weekend.
Narkle made his club debut in Round 7 after being signed as an SSP selection following his delisting from Port Adelaide at the end of last year.
"Following scans, we can confirm that Quinton has suffered an undisplaced fracture to the bone," Dockers EGM of Football Joe Brierty said.
"This will see Narks miss the next 6 - 8 weeks of football, but positively, he will avoid surgery, with confirmation that he has avoided damage to his ACL graft, which is great news.
"Since joining the Club in the SSP period at the end of last year, he has worked really hard to integrate into our program and get back to playing AFL footy. It's a disappointing setback for him.
"Our performance health team will support him through his rehab, and we look forward to seeing Narks' playing again later in the season."
Dockers coach Justin Longmuir has also revealed that ruckman Sean Darcy is touch and go for this week after sustaining a knee injury.
"We don't know 100 per cent if he's going to get up this week," Longmuir said.
"We'll try and test him out later in the week."
Blow for Power defender, Cat B rookie
Port Adelaide will be without defender Kane Farrell for at least a month due to a knee injury.
Farrell underwent arthroscopy surgery on Tuesday after reporting discomfort in his knee over the weekend, with the flanker facing 4-6 weeks on the sidelines.
The Power have also revealed category B rookie Jacob Moss will be sidelined for at least three months after a training incident.
The basketball product has suffered a syndesmosis injury and a fracture to his fibula, requiring surgery last week.
Trio Josh Lai (hand, 1-3 weeks), Jack Lukosius (knee, 1-3 weeks) and Tom Cochrane (foot, 7-11 weeks) are still in recovery, as is Todd Marshall (Achilles) who has no return timeframe.
