Tuesday afternoons mean injury news, with a majority of AFL clubs set to confirm the latest from their casualty wards by Tuesday evening.
The latest across the competition has confirmed a Collingwood ruckman has required surgery on a toe injury that will place him on the sidelines for a lengthy period, while there's mixed news at Moorabbin and a Cats veteran prepares to return.
Here's the latest AFL injury news ahead of Round 7.
Essendon small forward pushing for ANZAC Day selection
The Bombers' forward line could welcome back Peter Wright from suspension, as well as Matt Guelfi from injury, with the latter a 'test' for Thursday's ANZAC Day, clash with Collingwood.
Guelfi injured his calf in Round 1 against Hawthorn and has been on the mend up until now, with the club revealing he's a chance to feature in a couple of days.
Midfielder Archie Perkins will be held back, with an eye on returning in Round 8 after recovering well from his hamstring strain in Gather Round.
Port Adelaide defender, veteran midfielder expected to play
Port Adelaide pair Lachie Jones and Travis Boak are on the mend are are likely to put their hand up for selection in Round 7.
Boak - who has been nursing a sore back from over a fortnight ago - is tracking positively toward a return.
Teammate Jones felt hamstring awareness during Saturday's loss to Collingwood, with scans clearing the defender of any issues.
Quinton Narkle and Trent McKenzie are expected to be sidelined for an extended period, with the latter hurting his quad.
Narkle was sent for scans which revealed a stress in his navicular and will begin off-legs conditioning this week.
Geelong midfielder cleared for returnย
Premiership Cat Cameron Guthrie has been cleared to make his return from a quad injury that kept the veteran midfielder sidelined for the opening six matches of the season.
Guthrie strained his quad in the opening moments of Geelong's pre-season hitout with Carlton in February and has since undergone a thorough recovery process to near a return.
The Cats confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that the 31-year-old is available for selection heading into Round 7, with the club likely to weigh up playing Guthrie at VFL level prior to a return in Chris Scott's side.
Geelong are also expected to have forward Gary Rohan in the senior selection mix following a period in the state league, while Rhys Stanley and Zach Tuohy could also come into the side to face Carlton on Saturday after being managed for Round 6.
Defender Tom Stewart and fringe tall Phoenix Foster have both entered concussion protocols at Kardinia Park, with the former to be replaced in Scott's squad for their upcoming game against the Blues at the MCG.
Surgery sidelines Magpie for three months
Fringe Collingwood ruckman Oscar Steene faces at least three months on the sidelines after requiring surgery for a toe injury.
Steene hurt his foot in the VFL over a week ago and has since undergone a procedure to fix the ailment, with the 2022 recruit anticipated to spend an extended period out of action.
Meanwhile, the Magpies have welcomed Harry DeMattiaย (finger),ย Nathan Kreugerย (calf) andย Jakob Ryanย (hand) back to full training over the past week, while pre-season recruit Joshua Eyre is building his workloads after hurting his hamstring in the pre-season.
Forward Dan McStay has returned to training following some time away from the club. The former Lion has been in a recovery block since the pre-season.
The club continues to hope McStay could return from his ACL injury in the second half of the season. The tall attacker will return to non-contact training with an eye on contact drills.
Carlton defender "should be right" for Cats clashย
Blues backman Jacob Weitering will look to get through Thursday's main training session to be cleared for Saturday's match with Geelong.
Weitering suffered a corked quad in the win over GWS during Round 6 and would be able to see out the victory, with Carlton's reigning best and fairest winner now building his workloads since the weekend.
Speaking onย SENย on Tuesday, Weitering expressed his confidence in getting through this week's training block ahead of the club's upcoming game against an undefeated Geelong outfit.
"I was pretty sore on Saturday, I've had a few decent corks in my time. I just tend to bleed quite a bit," Weitering said.
"It's pretty debilitating when you do get one in the quad. I've compressed and iced it, and I'm back moving in some capacity today.
"Hopefully I have a good round around on Thursday. If all goes well I should be right for this week."
The Blues will eventually provide an update on hampered defender Zac Williams, who was subbed out of the win over the Giants following a knock to the Achilles.
Carlton could have Adam Cerra (hamstring) Caleb Marchbank (back), Lachie Fogarty (wrist) and David Cuningham (calf) back from injury, while Mitch McGovern (hamstring) is an unlikely option.
King a test, young Saint suffers setback
St Kilda's Max King remains no certainty to make the trip to Adelaide to face the Power on Friday, with the Saints forward a test to overcome a recent knee injury.
King was ruled out of last week's game against the Western Bulldogs due to the injury he sustained the week prior, with King required to pass a fitness test this week to be deemed fit to return.
Fellow forward Matthew Allison is in a similar position after overcoming his own knee concern, with a return via the VFL likely.
Senior trio Ben Paton (pectoral), Hunter Clark (calf) and Mason Wood (collarbone) could all return next week, with the trio recently taking part in a VFL-level scratch match that included midfielder Paddy Dow.
Meanwhile, young Saints backman James Van Es is facing "another significant rehab period" after suffering a setback in his recovery from an ankle issue. The club confirmed this week that the second-year defender will require further surgery.
โJames was ticking the final boxes to return to play when a scan revealed worsening damage to his ankle,โ Saints football boss David Misson said, via club update.
โIt's extremely disappointing, especially given the broader context of James' injury history since joining the club.
โHe'll now require further surgery and it's likely he'll face another significant rehab period.
โWe'll support James as he tackles this next stint on the sidelines and will do all we can to get him back out on the field as soon as possible.โ
Crows quartet listed as 'tests'
As many as four Adelaide players will need to prove their fitness over the coming days as the Crows prepare to make the trip to Hobart to face North Melbourne.
Midfielder Sam Berry (foot) and defender Brodie Smith (back) will both be monitored over the coming days after taking part in last week's loss to Essendon.
Forward Lachie Murphy (knee) and defender Jordon Butts (hamstring) are both a chance to return from their respective injuries for Saturday's game against the Roos.
โSam was unable to complete the game on Friday night โ he's got a minor foot issue,โ Crows high-perfotmance boss Darren Burgess said in a club update.
โButtsy was really close to playing last week, and just missed out at the last minute.
โMurph has completed everything we have asked of him over the past three weeks.
โBrodie has been managing a back issue, he did really well to playย on Friday nightย and get through the game,โ Burgess said.
โSo, we'll see how he pulls up this week and then make a call on whether he will be available or not.โ
Dockers to potentially regain attacking pair as forward enters concussion protocols
Fremantle small forward pairing Sam Switkowski and Michael Frederick are in the selection frame after overcoming concussion and hamstring concerns respectively.
The pair are listed as 'tests' for Saturday's game against the Western Bulldogs, with both players likely to come into Justin Longmuir's side.
โSwitta is going well, he has to get through main training this week and he'll be available for selectionโ, Dockers high-performance manager Phil Merriman said.
โFreddy's been really good, flying as he always does in reconditioning, and the plan is for him to play this week.โ
The likely inclusion of the duo comes as key forward Jye Amiss enters concussion protocols following a head knock sustained in Round 6.
โHe (Amiss) has actually pulled up really well,โ Merriman said.
โHe's come in today (Monday) with no symptoms, so we'll be watching him really closely this week.
โHe obviously won't play this week but hopefully we get him back the following week.โ
Key defender Brennan Cox remains close to ten weeks away from a return as he recovers from a hamstring injury.
Sydney star nearing return, needs to prove fitness
Swans midfielder Luke Parker has entered full training this week and will be a test to play in Round 7 when the Swans face Hawthorn.
Parker broke his arm during the pre-season and is yet to feature this year, with the Swans hoping their recent bye would give their former captain more time.
Parker will need the coming days to be cleared to play, while defender Dane Rampe is nearing his own return and will have his hamstring assessed next week.
Utility Sam Reid could also be in the selection frame next week as he eyes a return from a quad injury.
