HAWTHORN holds no concerns over the immediate playing future of Ryan Burton after he hurt his knee in a VFL practice match on Saturday.

The exciting medium forward left the ground in the second quarter of Box Hill's clash with Casey Scorpions and watched the rest of the match from the sidelines with a compression bandage on his knee.

But the Hawks have cleared him of any serious damage, with a club spokesperson saying the injury was merely a clash of knees and that he only suffered bruising.

Burton was Hawthorn's first selection at last year's national draft and the 19th pick overall. He starred for South Australia as a bottom age player at the 2014 Under-18 Championships before badly breaking his leg later in the year.

The 19-year-old from North Adelaide didn't play at all last season, but was rated by some as a potential top-five draft pick before his injury.

The Hawks had brought him along slowly through the pre-season and Saturday's match was just his second hit-out of the year.

Box Hill opens its VFL season on Saturday at home to Sandringham.