BARRY Hall heads the list of inclusions for the Western Bulldogs this week but the club is yet to decide if Jason Akermanis will make his return to senior football against Fremantle on Sunday.

Hall moved well during the light run on Wednesday and is expected to return from the ankle injury that kept him from travelling to Darwin.

However, Akermanis could yet spend another week in the VFL with the club unsure if there is a spot in the side for the Brownlow medallist.

"His form has been reasonable; below average; then really good; then reasonable on the weekend," coach Rodney Eade said at Whitten Oval.

"From his point of view, he is ticking some boxes. He was unfortunate last week, but it's just a matter of a spot in the team now.

“He’s in the mix but we certainly need to have some further discussions.”

Captain Brad Johnson completed half the session and has rated himself likely to play, while Jordan Roughead will return from a bout of gastro and team up with Ben Hudson against Fremantle giant Aaron Sandilands. 

Ryan Griffen (rolled ankle) didn’t train while Brian Lake (corked thigh) was on light duties but both are expected to face Fremantle.

Callan Ward, Easton Wood and Ben Hudson were also kept out of the main training group but Eade said the session was tailored as casual.

“We always knew it was going to be a lighter day today,” Eade said.

“But we’re really pleased with our fitness and the players seem to have recovered really well, 95 per cent of them.

“We finished full of running on Saturday night and we’ve got no doubt our fitness base is really good and they’ll be right by Sunday.”

Eade agreed the Etihad Stadium clash was a definitive “eight-point game” for the Bulldogs, with just four points separating them from the fourth-placed Fremantle on the ladder.

“Whoever wins is fourth and if they win, they probably sew it up and if we win, we give ourselves a chance,” he said.

“You’ve got to take that out of your mindset. We’ve had some good form, we’ve won four out of the past five and some areas we’ve focused on are really improving.

“Our run is getting better and we’re getting some players back from injury and our fitness is really good.

“We can certainly head into the game with a bit of confidence.”