The Western Bulldogs will wait until the 11th hour to make a decision on injured star Ryan Griffin ahead of Saturday night's qualifying final with Collingwood.
The 24-year-old pulled up with swelling of the knee following the Dogs' 29-point win over Essendon on Saturday night and was a no-show at training on Wednesday.
Bulldogs' coach Rodney Eade, who was confident the dashing midfielder would line up, in the aftermath of the Dons' win, said there were now some lingering doubts.
"We-re still hopeful he-ll play, so we-ll make a decision about an hour and a half before the game starts," Eade said on Wednesday. "
The Dogs are still reeling from the loss of star midfielder Adam Cooney and defender Dale Morris over the past fortnight, with both ruled out for the season, but their absence is just the start of a worrying injury list.
Persistent overnight rain forced the Bulldogs to move their main training session from the MCG to the Whitten Oval. Brad Johnson, who is also a lineball chance to play, trained with the main group but ruckman Ben Hudson, Lindsay Gilbee, Tom Williams and Brian Lake were not sighted.
Eade said that Shaun Higgins, who played well in the VFL last week, has overcome his bout of thyroiditis and is an almost certain starter. Will Minson will more than likely replace Jordan Roughead, who will miss a fortnight with a shoulder injury while Easton Wood is also a chance to return from a hamstring strain.
Whilst the Dogs are considered rank outsiders to beat Collingwood on Saturday night, Eade insisted that the mood at the Whitten Oval remains upbeat.
"Certainly our players know where they-re at and what people think of them."
"There-s no doubt that we go in with confidence. We know everyone-s written us off and (thinks) we-re no chance, but certainly internally we-ve got a lot of belief and a lot of confidence that we can do well."