Port Adelaide forward Ollie Lord’s worst fears have been realised, with the club confirming on Saturday that his season is over.

The 24-year-old had been in good form during a SANFL game on Good Friday at Noarlunga Oval, booting two first-half goals before he went down in pain with an alarming knee injury.

He was taken for scans which have now revealed he has ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee

“We are shattered for Ollie to receive this news,” Port Adelaide’s medical services boss Tim O’Leary said.

“Ollie had a really strong pre-season and was working hard to put himself back in contention for AFL selection.

“It’s a tough injury for any player, but we know Ollie will take on his rehab with his characteristic positive attitude, and we will all be here to support him along the way.”

Lord’s next step is surgery.

It has been a long and slow journey for Lord who was drafted by the club in 2020.

He made his debut in 2023 and played 13 games that year, and manged 15 last season in what was his most productive to date.

He was named in Port Adelaide’s Round 1 clash with North Melbourne this season but was victim of the team’s 46-point belting and was dropped the following week.

In all, he’s played just 35 games but there was some optimism this year he would feature more regularly.

It’s another blow for Port who are having their depth seriously tested.

Back-up ruck Ivan Soldo will miss the season with his own ACL injury, forward bull Sam Powell-Pepper is still 7-9 weeks away with his knee, key defender Esava Ratugolea (also a knee) is a TBC, and Josh Sinn will be out for most of the year with a shoulder issue.

Of course, there is still no date on captain Connor Rozee’s (hamstring) return, and reborn key defender Todd Marshall is battling an ankle injury and will miss this week’s game.