Hawthorn has confirmed star Cyril Rioli will not return before the AFL finals.

Rioli has been on the sidelines since suffering a hamstring injury in round 15 against Gold Coast.

The reigning premiers were initially hopeful the 25-year-old could get a match under his belt before September.

But football manager Chris Fagan confirmed on Thursday that will not happen.

“Regular surveillance scans on Rioli have shown his injury has been steadily improving, however, recent scans showed the tendon healing process has slowed a little,” Fagan said on the Hawks’ website.

Rioli was on Tuesday listed as being two to four weeks away on the club’s injury list.

“That timeline is probably closer to four weeks than two,” Fagan admitted.