Riewoldt has not played since severely injuring his hamstring in the round-three win over Collingwood.
The Saints skipper has resumed running and coach Ross Lyon said he was on track to be back before the year was out.
“He is running at the higher end; he’s not yet 100 per cent but he is certainly doing a lot of quality work and it’s been pleasantly surprising because I’ve stepped away from it and got really good reports off the surgeon,” Lyon said.
“We’re really optimistic that Nick will be back in the latter third of the season.”
But Lyon stopped short of predicting an exact time of return for Riewoldt for fear it would create unnecessary pressure.
“If I put a timeframe on it, it becomes a countdown and every week [people are asking] ‘is he playing?’”
Lyon did sound a caution, however, saying that he was still prepared for the eventuality of the skipper not returning at all in 2010.
“If he doesn’t, that’s the way it goes," he said. "There are no certainties until it occurs but he’s really vibrant and positive.”
