Hawthorn's pre-season injury woes have worsened, with fringe swingman Denver Grainger-Barras facing up to 14 weeks on the sidelines.
The Hawks will be without key defender James Blanck (knee) for the entire 2024 campaign, while reigning best and fairest Will Day (foot), forward Chad Wingard (Achilles) and flanker Changkuoth Jiath (hamstring) are already confirmed to miss the start of the season.
Forward Dylan Moore (glandular fever) is in doubt for the club's Round 1 bout with Essendon in mid-March, while emerging pair Seamus Mitchell (jaw) and Bailey Macdonald (leg) are also no certainty to be available.
Sam Mitchell's selection concerns have been compounded with the news former top six draft selection Grainger-Barras is facing 12-14 weeks on the sidelines due to a toe injury.
Following an unfortunate training accident, the versatile youngster has required surgery after suffering 'turf toe'.
"During an accidental incident, Denver injured his toe in the intraclub last Thursday with subsequent scans showing he has a significant turf toe injury," Hawthorn doctor Liam West said.
"Following discussions as a medical team, alongside consultation with several specialists across Australia, it was deemed that the best course of action for Denver was for him to undergo surgery to help return him to play this season and protect the health of his toe in the long term.
“Having successfully undergone this procedure we are expecting to see him return to play in 12-14 weeks."
The timeline for his recovery is likely to place Grainger-Barras out of action for the opening ten rounds of the home and away season - one that shaped as a critical one for the off-contract Swan Districts product.
Grainger-Barras played just seven games under Mitchell last year, returning to the senior side in Round 17 last year as a forward option.
Drafted as the best key defender in his class in 2020, the Hawks have looked to the 21-year-old as a flexible, tall talent who can be utilised at either end of the field.
Blanck's recent injury opened the door for Grainger-Barras to potentially find a role in the Hawks' rearguard, while the Waverley club moved to sign Box Hill addition and VFL star Ethan Phillips this week by moving Blanck to the long-term injury list.
The Hawks are set to face the Western Bulldogs on two occasions in the fortnight as part of their pre-season practice match schedule ahead of a Round 1 clash with Essendon at the MCG on Saturday, March 16.