Geelong has not ruled Andrew Mackie out of the Easter Monday clash with Hawthorn but coach Chris Scott says no risks will be taken with the experienced and creative defender.
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Mackie broke into a jog at training on Tuesday and Scott said the nine-day break between games meant the club did not have to rush a decision on the half-back's fitness. He was subbed out during the third quarter of Saturday night's match against West Coast with hamstring tightness and has since had scans, but Scott was vague about the results.
We haven't ruled him (Mackie) out, but he's not a certainty either," Scott said before training.
"The nine-day break is a little bit of a luxury. We'd probably have to be further along in our decision-making if we were playing on Saturday. But given it's a Monday game, he's got a bit more time and we'll delay the decision as well.
"These things are normally quite definitive: you’ve either got a strain or you haven't. This one's not as definitive.
"If he takes the field he is right to go because we don't take risks with injured players, but the advice that we've got at this stage is that it's possible that he will play."
Mackie was among the Cats' best against West Coast before he left the field, part of a miserly defence that kept West Coast goalless after quarter time. The Hawks have a plethora of scoring options - Jarryd Roughead and Jack Gunston kicked nine between them against Gold Coast and there were 12 goalkickers in all - but Scott backed his team's defence with or without Mackie. "We'd love to have him but if we don't we won't give up," he said.
If Mackie does not recover in time to resume his part in the engrossing rivalry between two undefeated sides, Mitch Brown could slot into defence. Scott said Brown was "in the mix" to return, having missed the Eagles game with an injured ankle.
The Cats have discovered that a seemingly minor leg injury to Billie Smedts is actually more serious; the quick utility has a crack in a non-weight-bearing bone" in his leg, and he is likely to miss another three or four weeks.
"Billie's situation was a little bit hard to come to grips with early on," Scott said.
"What we didn't know is that there was a small crack in there that has come to light in recent times... The good news is that he's halfway through that rehab process."
Steven Motlop is expected to return to the VFL in the coming weeks, having stepped up his return from back surgery by joining the main group at training.
