ADELAIDE forward Josh Jenkins will have precautionary scans on his right knee after hyper-extending it in the first term against St Kilda on Sunday night.
With fellow key forwards Taylor Walker and Lewis Johnston both injured, the Crows' faithful collectively held their breath when Jenkins' knee bent the wrong way after being pushed over the boundary line by Saint Rhys Stanley.
He was able to play out the game, but had the knee strapped after falling to the ground for several tense moments.
Crows coach Brenton Sanderson said that while initial news from the club doctor and from Jenkins himself suggested the injury was only minor, he immediately feared the worst.
"It didn't look good ... I had a quick look at the replay, it looked very similar to 'Tex' (Walker's) injury," Sanderson said.
"I haven't caught up with the doctor yet but at half-time he said it was a hyper-extended knee but Josh just said it feels fine.
"We'll be cautious with it this week, we'll have scans and make sure he's OK."
Given Jenkins' form since Walker's season-ending knee injury three weeks ago, his absence would be a disaster for the Crows.
The 24-year-old has managed at least six scoring shots in his past three appearances, with inaccuracy in front of goal the only thing stopping a treble of big returns.
He's kicked 8.11 in the last three weeks.
Sanderson admitted Jenkins required further work on his kicking technique but still labelled him "incredible".
"He's an incredible athlete, I think he could play almost any sport but we're seeing some really great highlights already, early in his career," he said.
"We're still working on his technique – he kicked two goals four this week, kicked two goals four against hawthorn, a bit straighter last week but his raw stuff's incredible.
"That goal he kicks on the run in the last quarter was just a bit of a highlight of what's ahead for our fans.
"He's a really excited prospect for us and when we can get 'Tex' back next year and you throw Josh around him again, it's a really exciting young forward line that we're going to produce."
Harry Thring is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry
