HE'S 36 years old and returning from a knee injury that might have ended other players careers, but a determined Dale Morris is refusing to rule out playing on into the 2020 season and beyond.

The veteran defender played his first game of the season in the VFL on Saturday, after an anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee in pre-season threatened to close the door on 2019 and perhaps his 252-game service for the Bulldogs.

Remarkably, Morris managed to avoid surgery from the March training incident and featured in Footscray's 49-point win over Port Melbourne only 106 days later - all this one year after recovering to play 11 AFL games in 2018 following a similar injury in the opposite knee.

It might seem fanciful to project any further forward than the next few weeks of a heroic comeback, yet Morris and his insatiable appetite for football won't put a ceiling on the future.

Dale Morris played the 2016 Grand Final with two broken vertebrae. Picture: AFL Photos

"It's no secret I'm 36, so I am old in footy terms, but I want to play for as long as I possibly can and where that is I don't know," Morris said on Tuesday.

"I'd never go into any year thinking it will be my last year, or this could be my last year. I just want to go in and play footy and see what happens."

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"Prove myself, show that I can play and if it's good enough to go again the next year then happy days."

Morris had 11 disposals, four marks and three tackles in slippery conditions at Adcon Stadium, including customary defensive pressure and an inspirational rundown in the third quarter.

"I was a bit nervous, a bit edgy (and) excited coming into the game against Port Melbourne," he said.

"Once the game started I got into the groove a bit and just felt way more relaxed. Pulled up really well."

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Senior coach Luke Beveridge has acknowledged multiple weeks in the VFL will be the best course of action for Morris before being considered at selection.

Footscray's next VFL game is at Whitten Oval on Saturday afternoon against ladder leaders Richmond.