Geelong are giving rugged midfielder Scott Selwood every opportunity to prove his fitness for Sunday's clash against Fremantle at Simonds Stadium.
Earlier this week, the 27-year-old effectively ruled himself out of the game after receiving scan results on the hamstring he injured in the round 13 loss to West Coast.
But he trained just a few days later after a quicker-than-expected recovery and he remained in the lineup when the extended squad was trimmed on Friday.
The injury was described as a minor one but it will still be a major feat for Selwood to back up and play after just 10 days.
The Cats made four changes to the side beaten by the Eagles in Perth, with Tom Hawkins back from suspension, Mark Blicavs overcoming soreness and Jordan Cunico and George Horlin-Smith earning recalls.
Lachie Henderson was named on Thursday, but dropped out of the side with a groin complaint. Nakia Cockatoo also injured a hamstring against West Coast, while Zac Smith and Jordan Murdoch were dropped.
Murdoch could earn a reprieve if Selwood doesn't come up after he was named as an emergency along with Wylie Buzza and Jackson Thurlow.
Selwood has added a harder edge to Chris Scott's midfield, laying a remarkable 52 tackles in four games and playing a pivotal tagging role on Rory Sloane in the win over Adelaide.
The 12th-placed Dockers are coming off a shock 57-point drubbing by last-placed Brisbane and will be trying to avoid a fourth loss in a row.
Their chances of pulling off an upset win suffered a huge blow when Brownlow medallist Nat Fyfe dropped out with a sternum injury.
Aaron Sandilands remains sidelined with a hamstring injury and replacement Jon Griffin is out with a calf injury, leaving debutant Sean Darcy to shoulder the ruck duties.
Midfielder Josh Deluca will make his AFL debut, with Nick Suban, Hayden Ballantyne and Griffin Logue also included.
Ballantyne will play his first AFL game of the season after he suffered a serious hamstring injury in the pre-season competition.
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