Hawthorn star Chad Wingard has been ruled out for the rest of the season.
Wingard has endured a frustrating season dealing with several injury issues that have limited the dual All-Australian to 10 appearances this year.
The Hawks were initially hoping to regain the 28-year-old by now after he strained his hamstring at training ahead of Round 16, but have decided to prepare Wingard for day one of pre-season rather than rushing him back for the final game of the year after another setback.
"He was still not progressing well enough, so at best it was going to be the last game of the year. We've decided to rule him out for the rest of the season," Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell told the media on Thursday.
"He is a bit frustrated, but it's just not coming along quickly. The upside to getting back isn't worth the risk. We want him to have a really strong pre-season and get on top of the lack of continuity he has had."
