Southern Steel defender Phoenix Karaka could be in doubt for the side's season-opener against the New South Wales Swifts next month.
Karaka suffered a sprained knee in the Steel's final pre-season game in Sydney last weekend and left the arena on crutches.
Coach Janine Southby said Karaka's injury was ''day by day at the moment'', but the ''prognosis at this stage'' was she could miss two to four weeks of training.
''That's what has been found out, but I guess it's still early days, so we are erring on the side of caution,'' she said.
After playing two full-length and three half-length pre-season games in Sydney at the weekend, the team was given Monday and Tuesday off.
The team arrived in Queenstown yesterday for three days and will train today before walking part of the Routeburn Track tomorrow.
Karaka is almost certain to miss next weekend's pre-season games against the Central Pulse and Mainland Tactix in Otaki, but it will be another ''week or so'' before Southby will know her status for the season-opener in Invercargill on March 1.
If Karaka is ruled out, it will leave the Steel with just two specialist defenders, Storm Purvis and Jane Watson.
