Melbourne will give spearhead Jesse Hogan as much time away from the AFL as he needs following the death of his father.
Tony Hogan passed away in Melbourne on Wednesday after a battle with cancer.
The 22-year-old Demon has been granted leave by his club and won't be considered for Sunday's match with Essendon.
He could yet miss further games, with Melbourne football boss Josh Mahoney saying Hogan would return when he felt he was ready.
"He won't play this week against Essendon and in times of timelines post that we'll leave it in Jesse's hands," he said.
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"That's all we can do. It's a very difficult time for any 22-year-old going through what he's been through and coupled with that it plays out publicly.
"We'll gauge how he's feeling about it. It's hard to measure in terms of timelines."
Mahoney said the death put in perspective questions about Hogan's form and a two-week suspension for striking.
During Hogan's spell, the Demons lost two matches and he was caught smoking while on leave in Western Australia at a music festival.
"You try and put yourself in Jesse's situation ... he has to deal with that publicly," Mahoney said.
"People have been commenting on different behaviours he's had during this time but hopefully this puts a bit of context into it.
"The last four to six weeks have been really difficult.
"As a club we've tried to support him through this and we'll do the same this week."
On his return to senior action on Monday, Hogan kicked three goals but was largely ineffective in Melbourne's 13-point loss to Richmond.
Hogan's strong contested marking has made him one of the competition's most dangerous young forwards since his 2015 debut.
Tony Hogan had compared his own footballing career to that of his son in a newspaper interview, noting: "Jesse's a Rolls Royce, I was a Ford Prefect".
Mahoney said the death of the former WAFL player would be felt across the AFL club.
"He was in constant contact with the club and a great supporter of Jesse. It's a real sad loss for Jesse but also for the club as well," he said.
Teammate Michael Hibberd said the playing group supported the club's decision to allow Hogan leave.
"It's a tough time for Jesse and his family. All the players and the whole club are rallying behind him," he said.
"We'll give him time to grieve with his family."
