CARLTON will wait to see how star onballer Marc Murphy pulls up from a searching fitness test before making a decision on whether he can return from a shoulder injury against North Melbourne.
Murphy, who suffered fractures in his left shoulder against Adelaide in round eight, took part in a light training session at Visy Park on Thursday morning.
He rode several bumps during the session before being put through his paces under the watchful eye of club coaching and medical staff.
Assistant coach Mark Riley is hopeful Murphy will be passed fit to play in the important encounter at Etihad Stadium on Friday night, but added the club would err on the side of caution with its star playmaker.
"He went through a fitness test the other day and pulled up ok," Riley said.
"Hopefully he's right, but we won't be taking any risks with a player of that quality.
"He's fine [in terms of the shoulder] … he's got full range, it'll just be the physical elements … [but] if there's any doubt or risk, he won't be risked."
Riley said Murphy's own assessment of his readiness to resume will play a major part in the decision-making process.
The Blues need to replace Kade Simpson, who will miss four to six weeks after suffering a broken jaw, but will be mindful of the dangers of bringing a player back from injury early given Lance Franklin's recent issues and their own experience with Jeremy Laidler this year.
Murphy's fitness isn't the match committee's only poser with Shaun Hampson's season-ending knee injury and Rob Warnock's VFL suspension leaving precious few tall options against the Kangaroos.
Important talls Lachie Henderson (groin) and Jarrad Waite (back) both took part in Thursday's training session and moved well.
Riley said that Waite could possibly have played next week in the VFL if the Northern Blues didn't have a bye, but was less definitive about Henderson's chances of a senior call-up this week.
"He trained well, but … the last training session in [an AFL week] is a lot different to playing at AFL intensity for four quarters," he said.
Matthew Watson is in the frame to relieve Matthew Kreuzer in the ruck on Friday night with Riley revealing the young key defender had been given a "crash course" in tap work at stoppages during the week.
Last week's upset win against the Pies has eased some of the pressure at Visy Park after a string of losses, but Riley said that the Blues were under no illusions as to the size of the task that still lies ahead of them this season.
"It certainly does give you a bit of emotional nourishment, it's been a pretty tough couple of months … but one bit of rain doesn't break a drought," he said.
"You can get a good feeling out of winning, and it has been tough times, but no one's celebrating around here."
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs
