The youngster has failed to overcome a hip problem and his place in the starting line-up is expected to be taken by Isaka Cernak.

As Roar come to terms with being without Minniecon, captain Craig Moore is remaining confident about the clash to come.

He said: "We've finished the season off extremely well and we'll just look to continue to do that.

 "If we play the way we have been and they reach their top levels I'm still extremely confident going into the game."

 But he stressed the danger of the wounded Reds, who have already proven their quality over the course of the season with their run to the Asian Champions League Final.   

 Moore said: "We're not cocky, not arrogant. You need to respect Adelaide, they've been great this season for Australian football.

"I still think Adelaide are favourites. It's their home game, we've not had a fantastic record against them this season but hopefully we can prove the bookies wrong and go there and get a win."

 Roar have not beaten Adelaide since November 2007, but a draw in the last meeting coupled with last season's Preliminary Final loss to Newcastle Jets will provide plenty of motivation for Moore's troops.

 "The last game (against Adelaide), the 0-0 game, we had a great chance late on to win the game and we gave ourselves a chance to win the game with the clean sheet.

 "I do think as a team we've improved since last season but if we get knocked out at the same stage people will say there hasn't been any improvement, so it's important that we really do push on from here," he said.