West Coast remain hopeful gun forward Josh Kennedy can avoid season-ending surgery on his injured elbow.

Kennedy, 27, suffered the injury in a marking contest in the second quarter of Saturday night’s big win over GWS, with football manager Craig Vozzo later describing it as “complex”.

The spearhead returned to the field to kick six goals against the Giants but it was reported on Wednesday, a day off for the players and football department, that Kennedy had moved a step closer to undergoing surgery.

The club, however, confirmed that no decision was likely until later in the week.

“Right now we’re just in a holding pattern waiting to see how he is,” an Eagles’ spokesman said.

“We’re no closer to knowing exactly where he’s at.

“The injury is a matter of ongoing assessment … nothing’s been ruled in or out – we just don’t have a definitive answer right now.”

Kennedy hasn’t required a sling to support his right elbow and hasn’t been ruled out of Sunday’s clash against Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval.

Scans on the forward’s injured elbow weren’t conclusive, making the club’s decision-making process more difficult.

“If he was in desperate trouble we wouldn’t be messing around – he’d be straight in for surgery,” the spokesman added.

“But he’ll have a test (in the next few days)and we’ll just wait and see how he goes.”

West Coast can ill afford to lose the current Coleman Medal leader, having already lost key defenders Eric Mackenzie and Mitch Brown to season-ending knee injuries.

Meanwhile, Port Adelaide speedster Jared Polec will spend two months on the sidelines due to a foot injury.

Scans on Wednesday revealed a stress response to the navicular bone in Polec’s left foot, with the AFL club adding the 22-year-old to its injury list.

“We could have attempted to push Jared through the entire season with an aggressive week-to-week approach but we believe the best course of action is to give him a rest and take him off his legs for the next five to six weeks,” Port fitness guru Darren Burgess said.

“We will take a long-term view.

“In six weeks’ time we’ll assess how Jared’s foot has responded and hopefully he’ll return sometime after that.”

Polec had managed the injury over the past three weeks and started as the substitute in the Power’s last-start win over Adelaide.

– AAP