Adelaide are fearing in-form forward Riley Thilthorpe could be set for a stint on the sidelines with a hand injury sustained in Friday's loss to Fremantle.
Thilthorpe was able to continue in the match despite hurting his hand and requiring ongoing medical treatment in the second half, with a knock to his left hand leaving the 2020 Pick 2 selection in some discomfort.
The extent of the concern is not yet known to the Crows, who are hoping "it's not a long-term miss" for Thilthorpe.
Speaking after his side's 18-point loss to the Dockers, coach Matthew Nicks said Thilthorpe was dealing with a suspected dislocated finger and will require further assessment.
"I think it's dislocated, we'll just have to see to what extent that is," the Crows coach said.
"He managed to go off and get back on the ground and still impact, so hopefully it's not a long-term miss for him.
"He's very important to us at the moment, as you saw tonight. So it was nice to see him come back out, but we'll know more as that settles down."
Nicks was confident the injury to Thilthorpe, who had fingers on both hands strapped at the start of the game, wasn't related to anything pre-existing.
The Crows coach lauded the fight from his young forward, who saw out the game despite the injury concern, having an impact in the second half, including one goal.
"This is something new, my understanding is it's not an old injury. Riley does get a lot of footies in his hands and goes for a lot of contested marks, and so his hands are getting beaten up.
"He's a pretty tough young kid, though. He keeps fighting through it. Hopefully this one's not a really bad one, but he's had his moments across the time with his hands, and that's what happens with key position players.
"We love him, he's a big part of our footy club. He kept fighting for us tonight. It's the sort of character that we think we've brought into the footy club, but hopefully he's OK."
Thilthorpe's potential absence could be met with the return of fellow tall forward Darcy Foagerty, who missed the trip to Perth with a shoulder injury.
The Crows sharpshooter will need to prove his fitness in time for next week's clash with Carlton, with Nicks crossing his fingers Fogarty gets the green light.
"Hopefully a big (chance)," Nicks said of Fogarty's Round 8 playing prospects.
"It's an SC joint, they can linger. He's a country boy though, so he'll be pretty keen to get back out there and help."
Adelaide, who suffered their third loss of the season on Friday night, could now fall out of the top eight by the cessation of Round 7.
The South Australian club are scheduled to face Carlton, Port Adelaide and Collingwood in their next three matches.
