WESTERN Bulldogs defender Ryan Hargrave will play his first game since last year's preliminary final on Saturday afternoon after being moved off the long-term injury list.

The 29-year-old is expected to line up for Williamstown seniors against Sandringham at Avalon Airport Oval in Chirnside Park after overcoming a serious foot injury that required two operations over the summer.

Hargrave has accelerated his rehabilitation over the past month to the extent where he is expected to play most of the game, and could even be a chance to push for senior selection the following week.

"It will be good to see him back in action. He's certainly biting at the bit so that's a good one for us," club football operations manager James Fantasia said.

"He's genuinely ready to go so we're thinking 80 to 100 per cent of game time. We're expecting him to get through the lion's share.

"He's had nearly a month of training now, about two weeks flat out, so we're confident, apart from some of the match conditioning, his fitness is really good so we'll try and give him as much game time as possible."

The Bulldogs are confident Hargrave's foot, which was initially repaired with bone from his hip and later reinforced with a plate, will stand up to the rigours of the game.

Fantasia said Hargrave had impressed over the past four weeks and may only require one game in the VFL before pushing for an AFL appearance against Richmond in round eight.

"He'll put himself back in selection with a good game," he said.

"He's an experienced player so I genuinely think if he was able to put in a good effort over the weekend there's no reason why he wouldn't be up for consideration against Richmond."

Young defender Easton Wood is also nearing a return after stepping up his training load following a freak ankle injury sustained in round one.

The 21-year-old snapped his joint, ligaments and tore a muscle in the Dogs' round one loss to Essendon and underwent surgery that very night.

"He's probably down to two or three weeks now. If anything, he's ahead of schedule," Fantasia said.

"He's been nothing short of impressive in terms of his recovering powers and the diligence he's been tackling it with."

Former Sydney Swan Patrick Veszpremi is one to two weeks away from being available after having a minor operation on the hand he broke at training two weeks ago.

Shaun Higgins, Daniel Giansiracusa and Ben Hudson have all put their hands up for selection for Saturday's clash with the Swans at Manuka Oval.

Fantasia said Higgins would be given every opportunity to prove his fitness before the Dogs flew to Canberra on Friday morning but was considered about "90 per cent" unlikely to play.

Higgins is suffering from groin soreness, and while he will be managed throughout the week and is likely to plead his case to play, is expected to miss a second game this weekend.

"Out of all of them, Shaun is probably the one who is the least likely to play," he said.

"He's got a bit of soreness, he's carried that for a couple of weeks and he's had it before so we're likely to be cautious with him."

Forward Barry Hall, who had minor ankle surgery last week, is no guarantee to face the Tigers next weekend and will be assessed throughout the week.