The GIANTS have made a forced change for their clash with the Crows in Adelaide on Saturday, with star midfielder Tom Green ruled out with a hamstring injury.

The tough inside midfielder was sent for scans late on Thursday evening after feeling tightness in his hamstring at main training, with those scans revealing a low-grade strain.

Green, who is averaging 31.1 disposals a game in a career-best year, is expected to be sidelined for three weeks.

The 22-year-old’s withdrawal opens the door for promising wingman and local South Australian Jacob Wehr, who returns to the side to face the Crows following impressive form in the VFL. Conor Stone has also been added to the emergencies list.

Saturday’s matchup with the Crows will be Wehr’s first game at AFL level since round two after spending three months on the sideline following a broken scapula in a collision with West Coast defender Liam Duggan.

Wehr has played in the GIANTS’ past three VFL games since overcoming the injury, with his 19-disposal effort against Box Hill last weekend earning him the call-up against the Crows.

GIANTS coach Adam Kingsley said it was a tough blow losing one of his midfield generals but is confident his side can continue their four-match winning streak.

“It happened yesterday morning and he was still a little bit uncomfortable with it and so we decided to scan him, and it came back no good which is unfortunate for us, but another guy comes in and he’ll get his opportunity through the midfield,” Kingsley said.

“We’re going to miss him but its next man in and we’ll have a crack and see where it takes us.

“Clearly, we’d like to win the game and keep the momentum rolling. It’s really important when you do have this sort of form and you’re feeling pretty good about yourself that you try and maximise it the best you can.”

As the team prepared to travel to Adelaide on Friday afternoon, Kingsley said he was under no illusions about the task ahead.

“We know it’s going to be a tough challenge over in Adelaide, but we’ll back ourselves in, and if we can get a win then we continue to build on that momentum and it takes us one step closer to where we want to go,” he said.

“We’ve watched their games against Collingwood quite closely and they’ve pushed what is probably the best team in the comp to a couple of points either time.  So clearly they’re very capable, particularly at their home ground so it’s going to be a really tough game.”

With Green ruled out several weeks, the GIANTS will be hoping that vice-captain Stephen Coniglio can continue his sizzling form against the Crows and beyond.

“He’s been really strong across the course of the year, not only the last month,” Kingsley said of his speedy onballer.

“Particularly last week’s game with Josh Kelly being tagged, and Tom Green not as his usual high level, ‘Cogs’ was the one that stepped up and really dragged us across the line in the end.

“I’ve been really pleased for him. He’s really fit and he’s understanding exactly what we want out of him, and he attacks it.”

Despite his high possession numbers and goal-kicking prowess, it was another area of his vice-captain’s game that the first-year GIANTS coach was loving most.

“I’ve spoken about in the past about that he’s probably been known as an offensive threat, and you’d look at the stats and say okay he’s had 30 touches and kicked three goals, but it’s his stuff on defensive that I really value the most. It’s his ability to pressure the opposition, to get tackles and create turnovers, that’s where his real value for us this year has lied. Aside from what he does with the ball, which is obviously really strong also.”

Kingsley also backed in fellow vice-captain Josh Kelly to rebound strongly from a tough outing in the win over Hawthorn last week. Kelly was kept to just six touches by Hawks tagger Finn Maginness.

“Josh and I sat down about it and spoke about the options that he does have, if, and when he does get tagged next, whether that’s this week or beyond,” Kingsley said.

“So, he’s armed with a few more tools now that will be able to hopefully help his influence on the game be a little greater than what it was against Hawthorn. I thought they did a wonderful job on him and us probably as a team didn’t help Josh enough also. So that’s something we’ll take out of that game, not only for Josh but as a group.”

Aiming for their first five -game winning streak since 2018, the GIANTS have a chance to move inside the top eight with a win over the Crows on Saturday night.

The GIANTS take on the Adelaide Crows at Adelaide Oval with live coverage on 7mate from 7:30pm EST.