WHEN Clay Smith makes his long awaited return from a third knee reconstruction in the VFL this weekend, the luckless Bulldog will be in the thoughts of a peer who has a travelled a frighteningly similar journey.

Daniel Menzel's courageous battle to overcome the dreaded ACL tear on four occasions is one of football's most inspiring tales, and the Geelong forward has formed a strong bond with Smith.

Menzel has only played 31 games in seven seasons at the Cats, while Smith has just 34 senior appearances to his name since making his debut in round one, 2012.

Menzel's own footy commitments won't allow him to support his friend at Whitten Oval on Saturday, but Smith will re-enter the fray with the best wishes of the football world and some sage advice from the classy Cat.

"When I heard he was going to play this weekend I texted him saying I was rapt for him and that I would definitely be keeping an eye on him," Menzel told AFL.com.au.

"I said enjoy the game and be proud of what you've achieved because like me, he wants to come back and play good footy.

"I feel so pumped for Clay because he's so excited to be playing again and he's worked so hard to get there."

The rehabilitation from repeated knee reconstructions is both mentally and physically draining, and Menzel believes only the very strong in body and mind can see the arduous recovery periods through.

Those all-important traits were clearly evident in the rugged midfielder from the first meeting, Menzel said.

"To come back from one, let alone multiple ACLs, you think to yourself how unfair it is he has to go through that again," he said.

"You speak to some blokes and you notice the drive to get back isn't that high, or they have doubts, but with Clay there's a lot of belief.

"To hear that he's back is really pleasing, but not surprising at all."

While he said Smith would probably run down the race with some psychological scars to go with his physical ones, Menzel was sure the 23-year-old's thorough preparation would exorcise any mental demons.

"The first contest he gets knocked over will be a little nerve-racking, and (the injuries) are certainly in the back of your mind, but you don't think about after that," he said.

"But once you've done enough contact drills, you're over the fear of a reoccurrence.

"Clay will be at the stage now where he's done everything at training, and he will have full confidence going into the game."

In a quirk of the fixture, the Dogs play the Cats twice in the next eight weeks, and Menzel believed it would be a special occasion if the kindred spirits squared off in Smith's first AFL game since round six last year.

"Eight weeks is a long time, and it took me six weeks in the VFL last time, but you never know," Menzel pondered.

"It would be pretty special to play against Clay in his first game back.

"It would be weird because we wouldn't want to tackle each other."