Hawthorn captain Luke Hodge has needed surgery to fix his arm fracture and is out of AFL action for four to six weeks.
It is another major setback for the Hawks as they try to make history this season with a fourth-straight premiership.
He joins fellow premiership players Jarryd Roughead (knee), Bradley Hill (wrist) and Liam Shiels (wrist) on the sidelines - although Shiels could return for Sunday's grand final rematch against West Coast.
Hodge suffered his injury in a collision with Geelong's Mitch Duncan during the last quarter of the Easter Monday loss.
Duncan was reported for the incident, but the match review panel threw out the charge.
"Our worst fears were realised, I suppose - the xrays showed a fracture in his ulna, so right now he's having some surgery to repair that," Hawks football manager Chris Fagan told the club website on Monday.
"We think it will take somewhere between four to six weeks ... but we'll know more once he's had the operation and how it all went."
Fagan also said Hill also needed surgery last week and will not play for three to five weeks.
Ruckman Jonathon Ceglar, a late withdrawal from the Geelong loss with back spasms, is no guarantee to be available this weekend.
Share
