The Kangaroos are preparing to welcome two stars back into the senior side ahead of their Round 21 clash with St Kilda, senior coach Alastair Clarkson told media on Thursday.
George Wardlaw is all but certain to play for the first time since suffering a nasty concussion against Hawthorn in Round 16, having returned to the required match fitness following two weeks in the VFL.
He dominated in the reserves, posting 29 disposals against Sydney and then laid nine tackles in the Kangaroos' nail-biter against Geelong's VFL side last week.
"[Wardlaw] played really well last week in the ressies, we'll pick our side this afternoon, but he'll be right in the mix," Clarkson said.
"He's had two games back now, and we're pleased that he's starting to look like he has the match conditioning to allow him to compete at the senior level. We'll pick our side this afternoon, but you'd expect him to be in it."
Clarkson highlighted North Melbourne's cautious approach with Wardlaw, with the recent concussion being his third in 12 months.
"He hadn't played for about a month by the time he recovered from his injury, so it was just making sure he had some good match fitness, and he's got that now," Clarkson said.
"Unless we hear something from the medical staff that suggests otherwise, he'll be available to play."
The Roos have their fingers crossed that spearhead forward Nick Larkey will join Wardlaw in the side's changes, with a fitness test on Saturday to determine whether he will feature in Sunday's match.
"We're hoping [Larkey] is good to go. The PCL injury that he's got has been [recovering] a little slower than what we would have liked," Clarkson said.
"He's getting close to being able to play, but it will depend on how he pulls up after today's session. We have another training run on Saturday, so we'll select him in the side and see where it lands on Saturday."
Despite missing the last three games, Larkey still leads North Melbourne's goal-kicking this season, booting 38 in 16 games. He's kicked eight goals in his last three matches against the Saints.
