St Kilda ruckman Tom Hickey has escaped serious damage after injuring his knee in Sandringham’s 14-point win over North Ballarat at Trevor Barker Beach Oval on Saturday.

The 26-year-old is expected to miss between four to six weeks with a medial strain after scans confirmed on Sunday he had avoided tearing the dreaded anterior cruciate ligament.

Saints GM Football Performance Jamie Cox said the club was relieved scans had cleared Hickey of more serious damage.

“There were initial fears that he may have damaged the ACL but scans yesterday cleared him of that,” Cox said.

“Tom will begin his rehab immediately and is likely to be sidelined for four to six weeks as recovers from the medial strain.

“While obviously disappointed to be sidelined for a few weeks, at the same time he acknowledges that the prognosis is much more positive than initially feared.”

After playing the first four games in Alan Richardson’s side, Hickey has spent the last fortnight in the VFL with Billy Longer taking control of the ruck in the senior side.

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