Melbourne will be without veteran defender Steven May for Saturday's bout with Fremantle due to a groin injury.
The concern adds to an interrupted start to the year for the 33-year-old, who missed the Demons' opening two games of the season due to a fractured larynx.
Melbourne revealed May would be a test for Round 6 after discovering a tear to his plantar fascia, however a minor groin issue is now set to put a line through his playing prospects.
The Demons confirmed the setback on Friday, with May no certainty of playing in next Thursday's Anzac Day Eve game against Richmond.
“Steven had a niggle on Thursday at training, and scans have since revealed a minor groin strain,” Demons football boss Alan Richardson said in a club update.
“He unfortunately wasn't able to tick off all that he needed to during our final run today, so we've taken the cautious approach of ruling him out of this weekend's game.
“At this stage, we're hopeful Steven will just miss the one match. However, he will be assessed daily in the lead up to Round 7.”
May's omission will see Blake Howes brought into Simon Goodwin's side, with uncapped backman Jed Adams now named as an emergency.
The change adds to three already confirmed changes for the clash with the Dockers, with Tom Fullarton brought in for his club debut alongside Daniel Turner and Koltyn Tholstrup.
Jack Henderson, Bayley Fritsch and Jacob van Rooyen have made way for the game after being omitted.
Adams joins Fritsch and Henderson in being on standby for Saturday's game at the MCG.
![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="1365px" width="2048px" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="400px" width="1000px" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)