NORTH Melbourne's finals preparations could get a significant boost with star midfielder Daniel Wells a chance to return this Saturday against the Western Bulldogs, according to coach Brad Scott.
Wells has played two games in the VFL since returning from the Achilles tendon injury that had sidelined him since round two.
After Wells played a full game for Werribee's seconds team last Saturday, North development coach Gavin Brown said he thought the 30-year-old would need at least another VFL game before pressing for senior selection.
But Scott told reporters on Thursday morning that Wells would be considered for a recall against the Bulldogs.
"We'll see how he trains today, he's a chance to play," Scott said.
"We know what a good player he is and we're going to have to make sure he's somewhere near his best to play him.
"Whether that's this week, next or sometime in the future, it will be a bit of a moving feast for us."
Scott stressed, however, that North would not play Wells before the finals if he was not ready for senior football, saying the midfielder could still play finals without playing either of the two remaining home and away games.
"We won't be rolling the dice. If we play him this week, we'll only play him because we think he's ready to play," Scott said.
The coach said Wells' Achilles was pulling up "better and better" from training sessions and games. He was also confident that the two-time best-and-fairest winner was better placed heading in this year's finals series than he was last year's, when he played two of the last three home and away games following a 16-week absence with a foot injury.
"He's actually done more work in terms of physical load than he'd done this time last year, and he played well in the finals last year," Scott said.
The Roos coach also confirmed North's interest in out-of-contract Essendon key defender Jake Carlisle, but suggested reports linking the club to Giant Adam Treloar and Cat Steven Motlop were media creations.
"[Carlisle is] one of the players that we'd like to add," Scott said.
"Like every club, we're looking at all sorts of different options to improve our list and if the time comes that Jake decides that he wants to look at a fresh start then that's the time we'll start drilling down on that, but as far as I'm aware that hasn't happened yet.
"We haven't said anything about either of [Treloar or Motlop], it's you guys who say all that, so maybe you can tell me (whether North is still in the race for them)."
North's clash with the Bulldogs on Saturday could be a prelude to an elimination final clash between the teams in two weeks' time.
With two rounds to go, North is sitting seventh on the ladder, just percentage behind the sixth-placed Bulldogs.
If those positions stay the same – or if North moves into sixth and the Bulldogs fall to seventh – they will clash in an elimination final, possibly at both clubs' home ground, Etihad Stadium.
Despite the possibility of playing the Bulldogs again so soon in a cut-throat final, Scott said North would not be holding any tactical tricks up its sleeve on Saturday.
"We'll do what we think is best to win the game, so we're not thinking that far ahead and I'm sure they're not either," he said.
