Ryan Griffen shapes as the feel-good story of Greater Western Sydney's selection scramble, with the veteran on the cusp of an inspirational comeback in week two of the AFL finals.
Leon Cameron faces all manner of selection headaches for the second week in a row but, pleasingly for the Giants coach, Griffen is finally off the club's injury list.
It has taken over five months.
Griffen's season looked to be over at various points of his recovery from back-to-back syndesmosis ankle injuries.
The former Western Bulldogs skipper returned in last week's scratch match featuring GWS and Adelaide's reserves.
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GWS co-captain Callan Ward suggested Griffen, a teammate of his in the western suburbs of both Melbourne and Sydney, is in the mix to face West Coast in Saturday's home semi-final.
"It would be (inspirational if Griffen returned at Spotless Stadium)," Ward told reporters.
"The boys know he's worked extremely hard to get to where he is now. He's had a lot of setbacks this year and at times he's thought his year is over.
"But he's just had to fight through and be extremely resilient.
"I'd love to play with him again ... to play last week was a huge credit to him.
"If he can come in this weekend I'm sure the boys would be very proud of him."
Griffen joined GWS following the 2014 season, having requested a trade amid coach Brendan McCartney's messy exit from the Bulldogs.
The 31-year-old midfielder has since managed 39 games for GWS, with back and hamstring problems also limiting his time on the park in 2016.
"Griff has had a really tough year but he's battled along," GWS young gun Jacob Hopper said.
"He's such a great player and we'd love to him back out there.
"It'll be a big week at training and some tough decisions for the match committee."
