GEELONG has received positive news on the injury front, with midfielder George Horlin-Smith cleared of structural damage to his knee.

Horlin-Smith hyper-extended his knee in the first half of last Saturday night's VFL curtain-raiser between Geelong and Essendon.

However, Geelong football manager Steve Hocking confirmed to AFL.com.au on Thursday that scans on the midfielder's knee had come back clear.

The Cats expect Horlin-Smith to play against North Ballarat at Simonds Stadium on Saturday.

It has been a frustrating year for Horlin-Smith, who has been limited to just three senior games because of ongoing hip issues that first flared up in the pre-season.

"He's having a really tough run, George," coach Chris Scott said at his press conference on Tuesday.

"George has been symbolic of the players who have been in and out of our team this year. He hasn't been doing a whole lot wrong, it's just a series of unfortunate events that have limited his output."

The Cats view the 188cm onballer, who has played 35 AFL games since making his debut in 2012, as an important piece of their midfield core, evidenced by their keenness to re-sign him until the end of 2018.

Geelong is hopeful ruckman Hamish McIntosh will return after the club's bye in round 13 and, all going to plan, round 14 at the earliest.

McIntosh tore a tendon in his calf in a VFL match in May and has been sidelined ever since.

Ruckman Dawson Simpson has been battling a shoulder complaint and there had been speculation that he may miss the rest of the season.

Scott denied those claims, saying he would be fit to play within the next three weeks, but acknowledged it was likely Simpson would need to have his shoulder surgically repaired at the end of 2015.

"It's not our expectation that we wouldn't see him for the rest of the year," Scott said.

"The likelihood is that at some stage in the long-term he'll need to have that (shoulder) looked at."