GWS Giants coach Leon Cameron believes Callan Ward will be fit to return in Round 2 upon the season's restart.
The former Giants co-captain has faced a long recovery after rupturing his ACL in April last year.
Cameron revealed Ward would have been available for Round 3 if the 2020 season went ahead as normal before COVID-19 shut it down.
"I got asked this question about will he return straight away. Right now, I can't see why not," Cameron said on SEN Breakfast.
"He was going to return about Round 3 so he would probably have been playing for five or six weeks by now.
"Clearly, in the past, guys who come back from knee recos normally have one or two [games] in the lower level to get their bearings and just find their feet. We don't have that luxury as such yet.
"They may bring some practice matches, us against the Swans, when the season gets rolling. I'm watching him and he's on top of his training at the moment. When contact comes in next week and the week after, that's clearly going to be a crucial thing that we need to look at, even though he was doing lots of contact a month before we broke.
"So he sort of sits in that: does he need a game? Doesn't he need a game? We clearly know what he is capable of doing. What I look at is it's a great bonus and if we think he's right, we'll pick him for Round 2."
Ward's addition to the side will be a major boost for the Giants. He only played one match last season and if he does return in Round 2, it will be 14 months since his last time he played.
