Port Adelaide star Robbie Gray's lingering groin problems are set to get the better of him in the coming weeks, with teammate Hamish Hartlett admitting Gray may need to miss a fortnight of football after the club returns from their match in China on Sunday.
Gray has had groin issues since January and has battled with the pain since then, which culminated in him missingย a fair slice of the Power's pre-season training.
When speaking on Triple M Breakfastย on Monday morning, Hartlett said Gray is on a special program ahead of Port Adelaide's groundbreaking clash in China, and would be re-evaluated after the club's bye following the overseas trip.
โI would say he would be right for China this week (and) weโll be able to manage him through that one,โ Hartlett said.
โObviously weโve got the bye, then he might need to miss a week or two after that.
โItโs a conversation that Robbie will probably need to have with (Port) fitness and medical staff in due course.โ
Gray has hit the ground running in 2017, averaging 17.7 disposals and booting 18 goals from across the first seven rounds of the season.
Hartlett admitted the 29-year-old is restricted in currently his movements, but says Gray has still been damaging despite being less than 100% fit.
โThey (groin injuries) are fairly restrictive, they do limit your power and your training,โ Hartlett said.
โSo there are going to be games where heโs not going to be able to get the output that we would like.
โBut if we get the ball into his area one-on-one often enough heโll still do some damage for us.โ
