GEELONG remains confident superstar midfielder Gary Ablett is on track to play against Melbourne in round one.
Ablett, 33, will look to further prove his fitness during an important training session on Friday where he will put his injured hamstring to the test.
Cats football manager Simon Lloyd said Ablett, who did not play any minutes in the JLT Community Series, was tracking in the right direction in regard to his availability for the clash against the Demons at the MCG on March 25.
"Gary's completed a high volume of work over pre-season and he's tracking well for round one," Lloyd told AFL.com.au.
"The players had a solid session yesterday (Wednesday) and we'll have a solid session on Friday.
"At the moment, there's no reason why Gary won't be available for round one."
It is understood Ablett, who hurt his hamstring at training in late February, trained strongly during a hit-out at the club's training base at Deakin University on Wednesday.
Adding to Geelong's confidence that Ablett will be fit is the fact he hardly missed a session prior to Christmas and post the Christmas break until he hurt his hamstring.
Geelong captain Joel Selwood said on Thursday that Ablett was looking sharp.
"I think he's actually running better than he was when he left the footy club," Selwood said at Captains Day.
The Geelong skipper also said the two-time Brownlow medallist looked carefree upon his return to the Cats.
"He looks like he's enjoying football for what it is and for what it's given him," Selwood said.
"He's bouncing around the track and he looks like a young kid again enjoying life."
Lloyd said fellow superstar onballer Patrick Dangerfield would not be risked in round one if he was not fully fit, but insisted the Cats would give him every possible chance to play.
"We've got 10 days where he's got a strong management plan that we'll focus on and that's something that we'll monitor as a day-by-day proposition," Lloyd said.
Nakia Cockatoo (calf) and Stewart Crameri (hip) will be given the opportunity to press their case to be included in the Cats' round one team when they play for Geelong's VFL team against Werribee at GMHBA Stadium on Friday night.
Cockatoo has increased his training load in recent weeks after tweaking his calf at training in late February and is a best-22 player in Geelong's forward line and through midfield when fit.
The Cats have been cautious with Crameri's training load after an injury-interrupted 2017 season where he managed just two matches while playing for the Western Bulldogs due to a persistent hip problem.
Crameri is in line to partner with Tom Hawkins in attack once he proves his fitness.
Cockatoo and Crameri will join George Horlin-Smith, Jordan Cunico, Lachlan Fogarty (who missed the game against the Bombers following a head knock) Jack Henry, Jordan Murdoch, Mark O'Connor and Ryan Abbott in the selected VFL team for Friday night.
A decision on the availability of Esava Ratugolea (concussion), Cory Gregson (abdominal strain) and Aaron Black will be made prior to the game, according to Lloyd.
"In regard to that VFL game there'll be various players on different loads depending on what their program looks like," Lloyd said.
Star defender Lachie Henderson (knee) is still on track to return some time between rounds one and four, while Scott Selwood (ankle) is on a similar timeframe.
