St Kilda senior coach Ross Lyon has admitted he still has "no idea" if Max King will return to senior footy this weekend.
King, who booted 52 goals from 22 games last year, is yet to play for the Saints in 2023 after dealing with a shoulder injury, but remains a chance to return to the side in Round 9.
Speaking on Wednesday, Lyon confirmed that the 22-year-old would train more this week before a decision is made, revealing that King was still dealing with a few niggles.
"I've got no idea (if he'll play), to be truthful. He'll train today and on Friday, then we'll have match committee and we'll make the decision. So yeah, not sure," Lyon said.
"He's been pretty good, he just had a little niggle on the weekend, so he's had a bit of anxiety (about it).
"It's a big decision, because he hasn't played (at VFL level). But look, he's really tall, so we could do with a bit of height.
"[Anthony] Caminiti becomes available (after suspension), we've got Zaine Cordy as well who'll be freshened up after a bit of a rest. He was really important to us in those first seven weeks.
"[King has] just a niggle. A sore arm, a sore butt, sore groin. They're just niggles. I think someone corked him.
"If there's any doubt on him, if he says, 'I'm not 100 per cent', I don't think we'd consider him. If he declares it, we'll decide [what level] he plays."
"Look, it was cold, it wasn't a very full house, yellow balls. I don't know, we've been pretty good all year at finishing our work. We've been proud of that, so the only way I know is to put the shoulder to the wheel and do some work on the track. But it hasn't been a consistent theme for us," Lyon said.
"You could see how you can do a lot of work – both teams – and it just becomes self-perpetuating. It was embarrassing. Gee, it was a hard watch, wasn't it? We've put it in the bin, and trying to move on. Thanks for bringing it up."
