A handful of Western Bulldogs players may be restricted to the sidelines through injury but Medical Services Manager Andrew McKenzie says the rehabilitation group is progressing well.

Forward Jarrad Grant has made steady gains after injuring his foot during in mid-January and will take another step forward in his rehabilitation this week.

“Jarrad has recently seen the specialist and has had the all clear to come out of the boot and start fully weight bearing which is a real positive sign for him,” McKenzie said.

Captain Ryan Griffen will also watch Wednesday’s NAB Challenge hitout from the sidelines but the midfielder will be back in full training this week.

“Griffen will return to training this week and we will monitor his response to training and how he will progress throughout the rest of the week and following,” he said.

The light at the end of the tunnel is in view for Shaun Higgins, who after an extended stint in rehabilitation group last year has returned to training with the main group.

“Shaun has trained over the last week, he has progressed well, he has been feeling good with his training and we hope that he will be available in the coming weeks,” he said.

Clay Smith is also increasing his workload, after an ACL injury cut his season short in round 16 last season against Essendon.

“Clay has been in a few non-contact sessions, he has been modified in his training and he is progressing into the group really well,” he said.

“We are happy with where he is at and he will be not far away from returning as well.”

McKenzie said Robert Murphy’s elbow injury would be reassessed at the end of this week, with the next steps in his rehabilitation dependant on those results.