Gun North Melbourne midfielder George Wardlaw is in some doubt to line up for the Kangaroos in their Round 8 showdown against the Cats at GMHBA Stadium.
Wardlaw, 21, lives with Roos defender Charlie Comben, who missed North's Round 7 match against the Giants on Sunday due to illness.
Wardlaw now has a "sniffle" and failed to train with his team-mates on Thursday.
"He'll come in later and train, we just wanted to keep him away from the group while he's got a sniffle," Kangaroos coach, Alastair Clarkson, said on Thursday morning.
"We always err on the side of caution. Hopefully he's good to go in 48 hours."
Wardlaw, who has a history of soft-tissue injuries, has played five games in 2026, averaging 18 disposals and a career-high six tackles per match.
Clarkson confirmed Comben will return for the Saturday afternoon test against Geelong.
"He's fully recovered (from illness) and he's good to go," Clarkson said.
North Melbourne has a shocking recent record against Geelong, losing to them on 14 consecutive occasions, and the Roos' most recent win against the Cats occurred in Round 15, 2015.
"We want to see how much we've improved, how much more competitive we are, how many we can win against these benchmark teams, like Brisbane three weeks ago," Clarkson said.
"It's another big challenge this week against a very experienced team on their home ground."
The Roos are sixth on the AFL Ladder with four wins and three losses.
