Adelaide star Eddie Betts is set to return from injury against former club Carlton on Saturday night.
Betts, who has missed the past two games with a hamstring complaint, is one of six Crows facing tests ahead of the Round Seven clash at Adelaide Oval.
Adelaide Head of Football Brett Burton said the three-time All Australian was close to playing last week.
“Eddie’s had a couple of good weeks in rehab and trained with the main group earlier in the week,” Burton said.
“We expect him to play if he gets through main training.”
Captain Taylor Walker (hamstring) and vice-captain Rory Sloane (foot) will aim to prove their fitness at training on Wednesday.
Walker sat out the second half against Gold Coast with hamstring awareness, but scans have cleared him of any significant damage.
“We’ll warm him (Walker) up tomorrow (Wednesday) at main training,” Burton said.
“If he gets through the warm up, he’ll get into the full session and if he gets through that he’s available to play.”
Sloane has been sidelined with a foot strain since Round Five.
Burton reiterated coach Don Pyke’s post-match comments that Sloane wouldn’t return until fully fit.
“We made the investment to rest him (Sloane) the week before and he’s obviously had two weeks off now,” Burton said.
“That’s just a week-to-week proposition and we’ll assess that tomorrow at training.”
Defenders David Mackay, Jake Kelly and Kyle Cheney could also be available for selection this week.
Mackay finished Saturday night’s game on the bench with a tight glute, while Kelly missed the win over Gold Coast with a hand injury. Cheney is nearing a return from a hamstring injury sustained in Adelaide’s SANFL season-opener against Port Magpies.
Recruit Sam Gibson (hamstring) and backmen Kyle Hartigan (hamstring) and Alex Keath (ankle) will miss at least another week.
Midfielder Brad Crouch and Andrew McPherson continue to slowly build up their training loads as they recover from groin soreness.
Injury list as of Tuesday, May 1
Eddie Betts (hamstring) – Test
Kyle Cheney (hamstring) – Test
Jake Kelly (hand) – Test
David Mackay (glute) – Test
Rory Sloane (foot) – Test
Taylor Walker (hamstring) – Test
Sam Gibson (hamstring) – 1–2 weeks
Kyle Hartigan (hamstring) – 1–2 weeks
Alex Keath (ankle) – 1–2 weeks
Brad Crouch (groin soreness) – 3–4 weeks
Andrew McPherson (groin soreness) – 3–4 weeks
Brodie Smith (knee) – Indefinite
