Ace Brisbane Lions defender Darcy Gardiner's AFL season could be over as he prepares to undergo shoulder surgery.
The 25-year-old went down in the third quarter of the Lions' 73-point smashing of Gold Coast in Saturday's QClash at Metricon Stadium.
Gardiner hurt his right shoulder - the same one he had dislocated twice before.
Lions high performance manager Damien Austin said the hard decision had to be made to protect Gardiner's long-term future.
"He had a surgical review (on Tuesday) and will have a shoulder operation (on Wednesday),'' Austin said.
"It will take between 12 and 14 weeks to recover so we hope he may be able to pay some football at the end of the season.''
Gardiner missed the Lions' preliminary final loss against Geelong last year and experienced knee issues which saw him miss the first three games this season.
He has become a key member of Brisbane back-six alongside All-Australian Harris Andrews and veteran Daniel Rich.
Gardiner likely would have played on Richmond superstar Dustin Martin in the Lions' blockbuster clash with the Tigers at the Gabba on Friday night.
Fellow defender Ryan Lester has also been ruled out of that match and will miss about two weeks.
Meanwhile in Adelaide, key midfielder Matt Crouch has been sent for groin surgery with no clarity on whether he will play this AFL season.
Crouch hasn't featured in a premiership season game this year and suffered a setback last week at training.
The Crows' 2017 club champion had been eyeing a return in state league ranks only to report groin soreness after a mid-week training session.
Crouch consulted a groin specialist and surgery was decided as the best option to fix his ongoing injury, which initially flared after he played a preseason game.
"We had managed his training loads ... and he had progressed to joining main training with the group last week," Adelaide's head of football Adam Kelly told the club's website on Tuesday.
"But he has continued to present with persistent groin pain which has led to the decision to have surgery."
Kelly said a timeframe on Crouch can return to the field would be known post-surgery.
The All Australian on-baller's groin issues came after he had hip surgery in the off-season.
Meanwhile, the Crows will make a call later this week on whether forward Ned McHenry can return after missing Sunday's loss to West Coast because of concussion the week prior.
Adelaide's injury list also includes key defender Daniel Talia, who is expected to miss another month after having foot surgery, while forwards Lachlan Murphy (ankle) and Tom Lynch (toe) are eight to nine weeks from returning.