CARLTON is preparing to welcome back a host of names ahead of the JLT Community Series.

With the Blues to host Essendon at Ikon Park on Thursday night, a number of key names are tracking for returns as the countdown to the season continues to tick down.

While the majority won’t be ready to take on the Bombers just yet, Director of High Performance Andrew Russell has been buoyed by the progress shown in recent weeks.

However, one player who is available for selection this Thursday is veteran Marc Murphy, who came from the ground late in the practice match against Hawthorn with his knee iced.

“Marc Murphy came off the ground late in the game against Hawthorn,” Russell said.

“He trained fully the next day and did a full training session today. He’s ready to go this week, there were no issues whatsoever with him.”

Murphy could be joined out on the playing field soon by his long-time teammate Matthew Kreuzer, who has made significant strides in his comeback from a knee injury.

After undergoing surgery back in January, Russell said the ruckman was on schedule to return prior to the season opener.

“‘Kreuz’ is training really well. He did the full skills session [on Monday],” he said.

“He’s just getting a few weeks of good training in and we expect him to be available certainly by Round 1. He’s looking good to play before then.”

Another player in a similar boat to Kreuzer is new recruit Alex Fasolo.

Russell forecasted that the goal-sneak could also get some minutes in before the home-and-away season, largely thanks to the commitment to his rehabilitation.

“Alex Fasolo’s arm is settling down really well. He has been doing skills training for the last week, no contact, and did a full skills session yesterday,” he said.

“He’s about four weeks after the injury and at the six-week mark, he’ll be available to play. We’re really pleased with how he’s going, he hasn’t missed anything and he’s done a heap of running and conditioning work.

“We expect him to be in really good shape when he plays, he’s all set to play by Round 1.”

One player who has made significant progress in recent weeks is Darcy Lang, who Russell said had a “slow start” prior to Christmas.

Russell said the second-year Blue would have a strong conditioning focus in the lead-up to the season proper.

“His ankle is settling really well… he did some good ball work this week and we’re excited by the way he’s looking,” he said.

“We’ll be looking for him to be available early in the season after he’s done a good conditioning block, which will enable him to both play at a high level and get through the season.”

A defensive trio have had their pre-seasons interrupted by back injuries, with Russell shedding light on the expected timeframes for Harrison Macreadie, Caleb Marchbank and Tom Williamson.

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He said Macreadie and Marchbank had both shown positive progression in recent weeks, but Round 1 returns were unlikely.

“Marchbank is progressing really well, he’s back into skills work. He’s in a preparation phase where he’s getting in some high-end conditioning and we expect him to be ready somewhere early in the season,” he said.

“Macreadie has had a really good four-week block of training — he’s back up to sprinting and change of direction, and was back doing ball work this week. Similar to Marchbank, we expect him to be playing early in the season some time.”

While conceding that Williamson’s recovery had been “a fraction slower” than that of his counterparts, Russell believed the dashing defender is now well and truly on the comeback trail.

“He’s progressing really well and similar to those two guys, we expect him to be available at some stage early in the season,” he said.

“He certainly won’t be available for Round 1, but sometime early in the year we expect him to be out there.”