Melbourne have revealed the extent of rookie Xavier Lindsay's injured knee after the first-round draftee was subbed off in the opening term of Saturday's loss to Gold Coast.
Lindsay was let in pain on the MCG wing after a marking contest, with Suns opponent Bailey Humphrey landing on his leg, causing the young Demon to go to ground.
The teenager was assisted from the field and immediately taken down to Melbourne's rooms, with the club soon making their sub change.
The setback ended a short stint for Lindsay in his third game for the Demons, with the Pick 11 selection managing two disposals before the injury.
Veteran forward Jake Melksham was brought into the game in place of Lindsay for his first appearance of the season following a hamstring injury that delayed his campaign.
A fortunate update from the Demons have revealed that Lindsay has avoided any serious damage to his knee.
Melbourne general manager Alan Richardson said that Lindsay would be "unlikely" to play in the Demons' Round 4 clash with Geelong, but will have a short-term recovery timeline announced during the week.
โIn positive news, Xavier has been cleared of any major damage to his left knee, with scans instead showing a sprain of his medial ligament,โ Richardson said.
โWhile Xavier is unlikely to be available for our next match against Geelong, he will be assessed during the week to guide his likely return date.โ
The Demons made five changes for their Round 3 clash, with Jake Lever (ankle), Matthew Jefferson (hand) and Charlie Spargo (concussion) making way due to injury. Daniel Turner and Taj Woewodin were both omitted from the Demons' side that fell to North Melbourne last week.
Melbourne are already without youngsters Caleb Windsor (foot), Judd McVee (hamstring) and Koltyn Tholstrup (back), while forward Kysaiah Pickett will return next week after serving a three-game suspension.
As well as Pickett, the Demons are expecting to have Windsor, Lever and Spargo available next week for their meeting with Geelong.
