ADELAIDE star Patrick Dangerfield could be facing up to three weeks on the sidelines after spraining his right AC joint during Friday night's 27-point loss to Collingwood at the MCG.
The midfielder suffered the injury during the first quarter when he collided with opponent Sam Dwyer as the pair attacked a ground ball.
He bravely played out the match despite being severely limited in movement, but is now in doubt for next week's clash with Geelong at AAMI Stadium, according to Crows coach Brenton Sanderson.
"He could play next week, but the reality is that he could be out for two to three weeks. That's probably what a sprained AC joint is," Sanderson said.
"But we won't know the severity until we get the scans back, and that'll probably be late on Monday."
Sanderson praised the 23-year-old, who is ranked second in the Official AFL Player Ratings, for battling through pain as Adelaide tried desperately to keep its finals hopes alive with a win.
Having been played in the forward line for much of the match, Dangerfield grabbed his coach at three-quarter-time and begged to be returned to the centre square.
"He said, 'Just put me in there, I won't let you down,'" Sanderson said.
"That is a sign of an incredible young player who loves his footy club and wants to win.
"Maybe we should've done that earlier.
"But I just didn't feel comfortable putting him in there, because you could see the pain he was in with his arm."
Sanderson also said he had seriously considered subbing Dangerfield out of the game, but had been assured by the club's doctor that there was no risk of further injury.
He was hopeful the Crows' lengthy nine-day break between matches might mean the young gun could recover in time to face the Cats.
Dangerfield finished with 15 disposals, including three centre clearances and six inside 50s, and also laid four tackles.
