Western Bulldogs superstar Marcus Bontempelli is on track to play his first game of the AFL season in his side's Easter Sunday test against St Kilda.
Bontempelli has missed the Bulldogs' first five games because of a complex calf injury sustained in a practice match in February.
The six-time All-Australian took a step forward when he completed an extensive training session over the weekend while the Bulldogs were in Adelaide for Gather Round.
He must complete Thursday's main training session at Whitten Oval, but is expected to be cleared to return at Marvel Stadium on Sunday.
It will be a huge boost for the Bulldogs (2-3), who have lost their past two games.
Dogs coach Luke Beveridge welcomed the return of his 29-year-old captain, who will be on managed minutes in his return match.
"We can't expect him to play 90% game time or anything like that," Beveridge said.
"He's trained extremely hard with his cross-training for the duration of his recovery, but there's no replacement for playing.
"So he'll blow up a little bit, but obviously it's exciting having him back in the team and we really welcome that."