Crouch has been ruled out for up to eight weeks with groin soreness as a result of the abdominal strain that forced him to miss the JLT Community Series. Forward Riley Knight is another 3-4 weeks away from returning from an ankle injury. Skipper Taylor Walker (foot) and defender Alex Keath (ankle) have both been ruled out of Friday night's clash with Essendon, but are expected to be available for the Grand Final rematch with Richmond in round two. - Lee Gaskin

A fantastic pre-season for the Lions and no major concerns ahead of round one. Skinner is ahead of schedule in his rehab and could be back as early as mid-season, while Paparone is not far away after having surgery to fix up his sciatic nerve problem. - Michael Whiting 

Ruckman Matthew Kreuzer is expected to be available for Thursday's season opener. Kreuzer, who rolled his left ankle in the Blues' final JLT Community Series game against Hawthorn, has been running freely this week. The Blues suffered a big blow at training last Thursday when Jarrod Pickett fractured his wrist, ruling him out for three months. Recruit Jarrod Garlett (shoulder) should be available to face the Tigers, but Darcy Lang(ankle) and Tom Williamson (back) face tests. Veteran defender Sam Rowe is expected to return in round two after recovering from a reconstruction of his right knee. - Howard Kotton 

Nathan Buckley said on Tuesday the Magpies had 40 players available to play this weekend, either in Friday's VFL practice match or the AFL season opener against Hawthorn. Elliott and De Goey won't play anywhere as they remain a few weeks away from match practice, while Fasolo and Wells are slated for action against Box Hill. It's not known whether Aish is ready after missing both pre-season games, but Greenwood is well and truly out as complications from his December knee surgery delay his return to any level until at least round four. – Jennifer Phelan

Orazio Fantasia is the big omission for round one, but the Bombers hope his knee injury won't keep him out for too much longer beyond that. Martin Gleeson will be out for 3-4 months with that ankle injury, while Jayden Laverde's hamstring strain should only see him unavailable for a couple of weeks into the season. The Bombers were keeping quiet on why Darcy Parish needed scans on Monday, but they were precautionary and he should be fine to play against Adelaide on Friday night. - Callum Twomey

The Dockers have a call to make on Bradley Hill with the reigning Doig medallist pushing to play Port Adelaide coming back from a slight quad strain. His brother Stephen Hill might need game time at Peel before being considered for senior selection after missing all three pre-season hit-outs. Lee Spurr hyperextended his knee and is looking at least a month on the sidelines. Harley Bennell's return date for the Thunder remains unclear nearly five weeks on since his latest calf issue, but Griffin Logue and Michael Apeness will hope to be back this Saturday. – Travis King

Hall, Hanley and Lemmens are all unavailable to play North Melbourne in the opening round, while Wright is also unlikely. Stuart Dew has consistently said the Suns would take no chances, and with Sam Day playing well in the JLT Series, he is likely to get the start while Wright gets to 100 percent. Lemmens and Hall could be available as early as round two. - Michael Whiting 

Veteran Ryan Griffen was a never a chance to play round one, and while Tom Scully (knee) and Jacob Hopper (groin) have improved, they must be only 50/50 at best to face the Western Bulldogs on Sunday. Griffen's ankle is a worry after he missed most of last year and with no set time for his return, he could face another extended tint on the sidelines. - Adam Curley

Cyril Rioli is training the house down, as they say, but don't pencil him in as a certain starter against the Pies on Saturday night until the teams are finalised 90 minutes before the game. Returning Hawks have been known to tick all the right boxes in order to play – only for the club to then give them another week just be sure. Jon Ceglar and Jonathan O'Rourke are back on the track but the club has given no indication about when they will resume for Box Hill. Neither played a senior game in 2017 and Ceglar hasn't played since injuring his ACL in August, 2016. Grant Birchall’s chronic knee injuries are now a major concern and the five more games he needs to reach 250 now seem an eternity away. - Ashley Browne

Thursday's main training session will be a crucial one for Tom McDonald and Clayton Oliver. The pair were on light duties on Monday, but will ramp things up to try to prove their fitness for Sunday's game against the Cats. Oliver is the more likely of the two to play after copping a knock to the knee against St Kilda in the second JLT Community Series game. He still needs to train fully on Thursday to confirm himself as a certain starter. McDonald is in considerable doubt and is running out of time to be cleared for round one. - Ben Guthrie

The wait for Sam Wright's return to AFL football will continue for at least another week. Taylor Garner, who completed a modified pre-season program, will have to pass a fitness test to play in round one for just the second time in his career. There was better news for Jed Anderson, who made a successful return from thumb surgery in a VFL practice match at the weekend. - Marc McGowan 

Boak is almost a certain starter to face Fremantle at Adelaide Oval on Saturday, while Powell-Pepper is also a good chance of getting cleared to play. Pittard injured his hamstring in the Power's JLT Series win against Adelaide and has been ruled out for four to five weeks. Broadbent had a second bout of surgery on his troublesome ankle. There's no timeline for his return, but he's expected to miss at least the first month of the season. - Lee Gaskin 

Dion Prestia is almost certain to miss Thursday night's season opener. The premiership midfielder warmed up with the main group and took part in kicking drills on Tuesday before stepping away and completing his own short run-throughs. Bachar Houli stayed with the main training group and will undergo a late fitness test to determine his availability. Daniel Rioli will miss the early rounds as the Tigers get conditioning into the valuable small forward, while Nathan Drummond is expected to return through the VFL in round two after completing his rehab from a second knee reconstruction. Nathan Broad has been impressive on the track but isn't available for selection until round four. - Nathan Schmook 

Steven and Longer are more likely than not to face Brisbane at Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon but need to recover well from Thursday's main session. Steven moved well on Tuesday but left midway through training and while Longer took part in a VFL practice game last Friday, he again needs to show his hip niggle isn't too much of a hindrance. Freeman began running late last week after hamstring surgery and Paton is doing ball work after a right thumb operation. Minchington needs knee surgery for a fracture on his injured knee and won't run for about another two months. - Dinny Navaratnam

Both Jarrad McVeigh and Dan Hannebery trained strongly at the SCG on Tuesday and will be tested again at a closed session on Thursday. If they both pull up well they're likely to be available for selection, but McVeigh looks slightly ahead in his preparation and playing both could be a massive risk for the Swans. Aliir Aliir will also be tested Thursday after he missed Tuesday's session, and could be NEAFL-bound after not playing since the first JLT Community Series game. - Adam Curley 

It's not good news for Nathan Vardy or recruit Brendon Ah Chee after setbacks in their rehabilitations while star goalkicker Josh Kennedy's return could be pushed back until round four after undergoing knee surgery last week. Small forward Willie Rioli was moving well at Tuesday training after rolling his ankle and no longer has strapping on the knee he hurt during AFLX, but the 22-year-old seems behind the eight-ball to be picked in the season opener and could play for East Perth alongside Petruccelle on Saturday. - Travis King

It appears only Redpath will be available for the round two clash with Essendon. The club won’t be rushing the recovery of Picken after his second concussion in the past 12 months. - Ryan Davidson