Young Adelaide defender Tom Doedee looks set to miss the rest of the season after suffering a suspected ACL injury in against Hawthorn in round one.
Doedee went down early in the second term at Adelaide Oval on Saturday afternoon, his left knee turning awkwardly as he attempted a tackle.
The 22-year-old was assessed in the rooms, with Crows footy manager telling Fox Footy at half-time that Doedee had suffered a suspected ACL rupture.
MORE: Melbourne v Port Adelaide: Jack Watts overcome with emotion following upset win
"It's a suspected ACL, not good news for Tommy," Burton said.
"He's an outstanding character, he's obviously disappointed... but he's staying upbeat."
Check out the incident below.
Crows defender Tom Doedee will not return after injuring his knee against the Hawks.
— AFL (@AFL) March 23, 2019
Adelaide suspect it is an ACL injury, with scans to come in the following days. #AFLCrowsHawks pic.twitter.com/NdMG46XgOL
Doedee will be sent for scans on Sunday to determine the severity of the injury.
If the early diagnosis is proved correct, Doedee will become the second player to suffer the dreaded injury so far in round one, with Richmond star Alex Rance going down on Thursday night with one.
Doedee made his debut in round one last season and quickly established himself as one of the competition's best young backmen, playing 20 games in his debut year, finishing second in Rising Star voting.
To make matters worse for the Crows, they went down by 32-points as Hawthorn again proved they'll be a force in 2019.
