The Western Bulldogs remain optimistic that Dale Morris will return to football in the weeks following the bye, after making positive progress in his return from an ACL injury.

Completing an 11-kilometre running session, Morris is back into full speed running, while tracking well throughout sprinting drills.

Medical services manager, Chris Bell, said Morris looks likely to return to full training over the next month.

“Over the next couple of weeks, we’re going to progress him back into some football drills and high-end agility,” Bell said.

“At this stage, we remain optimistic that Dale will make a return to full training in the weeks following the bye.”

Developing ruckman Tim English remains a test for Saturday’s clash with North Melbourne, after suffering from persistent soreness sustained in round seven against Richmond.

“Tim  has had some persistent soreness from the heavy knocks he got in the Richmond game,” Bell said.

“This has meant that he’s missed a fair bit of training over the past few weeks. He has turned the corner and is back training, but we’ll make a call on Tim’s availability as the week progresses.”

Fergus Greene look likely to return via the VFL this weekend, after completing his rehab for an ankle injury sustained in the VFL round two match against Collingwood.

“In some great news, Fergus Greene has continued to kick some goals in his return from an ankle injury,” Bell said.

“He’s completed our end-stage rehab and comes back into full training this week. If he gets through full training as we expect, he’ll return to playing this weekend.”

* Injury list updated on Monday 20 May, 2019