CYRIL Rioli made only a brief appearance at training on Tuesday morning, while his teammates took part in goalkicking practice.
The forward hasn't played since round 15 and his hamstring remains under intense scrutiny as Hawthorn weighs up whether to select him for Saturday's preliminary final against Port Adelaide.
The 25-year-old trained with the main group for the first time on Monday, and appears to be doing everything possible to prove he's ready.
"From what I understand he's pulled up well," teammate Josh Gibson told reporters on Tuesday.
"It was good to have him back there at the training session yesterday," he said.
But Gibson insisted it was too early to make a call.
"There's no saying he's playing yet, we're not saying he's not.
"There's still plenty of days before we have to select the side.
And Gibson cautioned against the importance that's being place on Rioli's place in the side.
"Everything in our camp doesn't rely on Cyril playing, but if he's out there it's a fantastic boost for the club," he said.
"I don't think it's a disruption. If he gets the all clear from the docs and the fitness staff to play, and his hamstring's fine, then you'd pick Cyril Rioli in your team.
"The only time it can cause disruption is if we were taking him in injured."
Gibson said speculation veteran Brad Sewell could be the one to miss if Rioli is recalled is premature.
"Sewelly's an inside mid and Cyril's a forward, so I don't know if they're a straight swap," he said.
"Sewelly played on the weekend, played really well and Cyril hasn't played since round 15, so I don't know how we can make a call on that taking place yet."
Gibson confirmed his girlfriend Renee Bargh, a Hollywood reporter, is expected to come to Melbourne should the Hawks reach the grand final.
"She's told me that she's meant to be going over for George Clooney's wedding, so (I'm) probably the first bloke that George Clooney's been knocked back to, so it's a nice feeling.
"But, we've got a big game to play this weekend and if she comes out the following weekend that'd be great."
