West Coast star Reuben Ginbey will not require surgery on his quad injury and could play again this season, in a major boost for the Eagles.

The club confirmed on Monday their most important player will not go under the knife, after meeting with a surgeon earlier in the day.

His timeline for a potential return to the field remains unclear and he is still set to be sidelined for several weeks, but the Eagles are planning for him to return to the field before the end of the season.

Ginbey was spotted leaving the Eagles’ Mineral Resources Park headquarters just after midday on Monday.

West Coast’s high performance manager Phil Merriman said the development represented a “positive outcome” for the 21-year-old.

“He will now commence his rehabilitation program, with a clearer timeframe for his return to play expected as his recovery progresses,” he said.

The 21-year-old got scans on Sunday and consulted a surgeon on Monday.

Ginbey went down in the third term of last weekend’s loss to Port Adelaide, with the defender pulling up lame as he chased Mitch Georgiades into his defensive goal square.

The fourth-year Eagle was consoled by teammates as he immediately came off the ground and went into the rooms.

West Coast coach Andrew McQualter said while everyone was disappointed, Ginbey was already starting to get into his rehabilitation.

“He’s obviously disappointed that he got injured and couldn’t help his team out but he’s okay,” he told 7NEWS on Monday.

“He’s already ready to attack his rehab and get back as soon as possible.

“The positive news at the moment is that he doesn’t look like he’ll require surgery at this stage. We’ll get a clearer indication of when he’s going to be able to come back and play (in a few weeks) but, yeah, he’s going to be out for a little bit of time.

“At this stage, we’re definitely hopeful he’ll be back at some stage this season. His rehab, as it progresses over the next few weeks, we’ll get a bit of a clearer picture of what his return to play is.”

West Coast now face a headache with replacing the important backman, with fellow key tall Harry Edwards also sidelined due to concussion issues, McQualter confirming he is still in the league’s protocols.

The Eagles coach added it would need to be a team effort while they were undermanned in the backline.

“We’ll work through our list and our team and we’ll be opposition dependant,” he said.

“But we’re just going to have to defend really well as a team. We understand we’re a little bit undersized now in the back half but we’ll make sure to put good pressure on the ball and give those guys a chance.”

While there’s not much chance of any tall defensive reinforcements, the second-year coach said Jack Graham was a chance to return from his shoulder injury against North Melbourne on Saturday.

“He’s definitely a chance this week,” he said.

“It would be a pretty quick turnaround but he’s got to get through training and there’s a few hoops he needs to jump through.

“So not a guarantee, but a chance.”

Ginbey’s devastating injury blow came just days after signing a three-year contract extension with the Eagles, tying him to the club until the end of 2030.

Ginbey has been among the AFL’s very best defenders since being shifted down back midway through the 2024 season.

The Dunsborough product, who often gives up considerable size to his opponents at 191cm tall, has earned plaudits for his competitiveness and defensive craft.

He has beaten some of the AFL’s leading key forwards, including two-time Coleman medallist Jeremy Cameron and Power star Georgiades, in individual match-ups over the course of his career.

Ginbey’s first AFL season in 2023 was brought to an early end by a hamstring injury but he has played 58 games in a row since, featuring in all 23 contests of his side’s 2024 and 2025 campaigns and their first 12 of 2026.

After producing a best-afield display in West Coast’s win over Essendon in round 12, McQualter pushed his candidacy for a spot in the 40-player All Australian side.

“There’s some good players, but I just think Reuben absolutely is one of the best key defenders in the game,” McQualter said.