North Melbourne big man Hamish McIntosh could miss the rest of the AFL season after suffering a serious knee injury against Fremantle on Saturday night.

Kangaroos coach Dean Laidley said the 23-year-old injured his posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and was expected to miss at least 10 weeks of football.

With only 10 rounds remaining and the Kangaroos' finals hopes suffering a major blow following their 53-point loss to Fremantle, McIntosh will struggle to play again in 2008.

McIntosh crashed to the turf and writhed in pain after contesting the opening bounce of the second quarter against Aaron Sandilands.

He was helped off the field by two trainers and was in a leg brace by half-time.

The Roos must now rely on David Hale and pinch-hitter Drew Petrie to carry the ruck load.

With Kangaroos spearhead Nathan Thompson out indefinitely after undergoing surgery on his troublesome knee, Laidley admitted his side was running out of fit players.

However, forward Corey Jones could return against Hawthorn next week after being named as an emergency against Fremantle.

Laidley said Shannon Grant, who was named to play against the Dockers but failed to make the flight to Perth, would return against the Hawks.

"He's had trouble travelling this year," Laidley replied when asked why Grant failed to front up against the Dockers.

"His form hasn't been that flash. His back and hamstrings haven't been good on flights, so I thought this flight here probably wasn't best suited for him.

"But I think he'll come back next week."

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