Western Bulldogs spearhead Josh Bruce has suffered a low-level hamstring injury and won't feature in any level of action this weekend.
Bruce made his long-awaited return from an ACL injury last week against Carlton in the VFL in what was a major step toward a return to the top flight, with the veteran forward having not played since August last year.
The Bulldogs had already planned to take a conservative approach with Bruce's return, flagging the 30-year-old will require close to a month in the reserves before being named at AFL level.
The key forward's three-goal performance against the Blues showed signs that Bruce may return earlier than expected, but a hamstring setback is set to delay his place in Luke Beveridge's side.
“Josh suffered some low-level hamstring tightness in the main session yesterday,” Western Bulldogs Head of Sports Medicine Chris Bell confirmed on Thursday.
“Having been in rehab for a long period of time, we don’t want to take any risks and he won’t play this weekend.
“We will assess Josh for the following week.”
Bruce's latest ailment will likely see him return through the VFL in Round 15 against Brisbane next Friday.
The Bulldogs' senior side are scheduled to face the Lions later that evening at the Gabba, before critical contests with fellow finals hopefuls Sydney, St Kilda, Melbourne and Geelong.
Bruce led the Bulldogs goalkicking last season with 48 majors from 20 appearances, one goal ahead of partner-in-crime Aaron Naughton.