St Kilda spearheads Nick Riewoldt and Paddy McCartin are likely to return against Geelong this weekend, with the pair needing to prove their fitness at Thursday’s main training session before being given the green light.

Riewoldt and McCartin missed the 32-point win over Carlton prior to the bye after suffering knee and concussion injuries a week earlier against Adelaide at Adelaide Oval.

GM of Football Performance Jamie Cox indicated that the former No. 1 draft picks – Riewoldt in 2000 and McCartin in 2014 – are both on track to face ladder leaders Geelong at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night.

“Paddy McCartin looks like he’s recovering well from the concussion he received against Adelaide,” Cox told saints.com.au on Tuesday night.

“He missed the last game obviously, but Paddy will need to get through training well on Thursday but it’s all heading in a very good direction for him to be available for selection.

“It’s a similar story with Nick Riewoldt. Nick has recovered well from his knee after also missing the last game. Again, if he gets through training on Thursday, Nick will be in the mix to come back in against the Cats as well.”

Cox said experienced key defenders Sam Fisher and Sean Dempster are recovering strongly, but remain a few weeks away from returning to the fold.

Dual Trevor Barker Award winner Fisher suffered a hamstring strain in the lead up to the Saints’ Round 11 trip to face the Crows, while All Australian defender Dempster hurt his knee in the loss to Adelaide.

“Sam Fisher is recovering strongly from his hamstring. He’s still at least two or three weeks away, but he’s back running and looks pretty good. He’s on track to return in two to three weeks,” Cox said.

“Sean Dempster’s also going well in his recovery from a knee procedure. He’s probably a week behind ‘Fish’. He’s probably three or four weeks away from re-entering the frame.”

Limited Edition History Book: Celebrating 50 Years 1966-2016 The Archives Edition

Round 14 Injury Update 21/6/2016

Paddy McCartin (Concussion) – Test
Nick Riewoldt (Knee) – Test
Sam Fisher (Hamstring) – 2-3 weeks
Sean Dempster (Knee) – 3-4 weeks
Billy Longer (Concussion) – Indefinite
Nathan Freeman (Hamstring) – 2-3 weeks
Tom Lee (Knee) – Test

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