Geelong coach Chris Scott has confirmed the return of veteran midfielder Shaun Higgins for the Cats' Saturday night matchup against Collingwood.
Higgins, 34, missed the Cats' disappointing loss against the Swans last Friday after being managed following their Round 1 win against Essendon.
Scott defended the decision, which raised some eyebrows, indicating that regular resting periods will be in line for the Cats' older players.
"We feel like we've got a deep squad that we're going to use, and that means that some of our players, including Joel (Selwood), will be rotated out when they're in rude health," Scott told the media.
"That was the situation with Shaun last week, and it will be the situation with others in the future.
"Hopefully, you understand a little bit better that if we have a group of players we are going to rotate through that if we wait to round four, five or six, you're going to have four to five players ready (for a rest) at the same time."
Scott also declared young key back Sam De Koning as a "likely" inclusion following a concussion that forced him out of Round 2.
Experienced players Mark O'Connor and Gryan Miers will continue to build match fitness through the VFL this weekend after both made successful returns against the Essendon VFL team in Round 1.
Tough midfielder Sam Menegola will also make his return to senior football through the VFL after end-of-season knee surgery hampered his pre-season. According to Scott, Menegola was expected to return at the end of May but is over a month ahead of schedule.
The Cats' coach also provided an update on Gary Rohan, with the electric forward back in training, however, the club is set to take their time with his recovery after the speedster suffered a series of back complaints during pre-season.
Geelong will face the undefeated Magpies at the MCG on Saturday night at 7:25 pm AEDT.
