WESTERN Bulldogs midfielder Ryley Sanders is recovering from a hamstring strain early in the pre-season, but veteran Adam Treloar has made a strong start to the summer after an injury-riddled 2025 campaign. 

Sanders had made an early impression on the track after putting in the work over the off-season, finishing third in the first 2km time-trial of the pre-season, before suffering a strain late last month. 

The 2023 pick No.6 ran with the rehab group at Mission Whitten Oval on Monday morning and is expected to return to full fitness by the time the Bulldogs depart for the Christmas break late next week.  

Treloar, 32, has carried his late-season momentum through the off-season and into what could be his final pre-season in the AFL.

The 2024 All-Australian was restricted to a career-low four senior games this year due to repeated calf issues that wiped out last pre-season and prevented him from training and playing consistently until the end of winter. 

Treloar returned for the final game of the VFL home and away season before playing in all three finals, winning a flag with Footscray – his first premiership at any level – to earn another contract for 2026. 

Reigning Charles Sutton Medal winner Ed Richards underwent a shoulder reconstruction at the end of August after the round 24 loss to Fremantle ended the Dogs' finals chances, undergoing the same procedure as star key forwards Sam Darcy and Aaron Naughton.

Darcy and Richards are back training with the main group on modified programs and will be in full training by January, while Naughton isn't far behind them.

Father-son recruit Will Darcy, who arrived via pick No.60 in last month’s 2025 AFL Telstra Draft, has started in the rehab group while he recovers from a back injury. 

Two-time All-Australian half-back Bailey Dale has fully recovered from the broken wrist he played through in the season-ending loss to the Dockers in August. 

Young key defender Jedd Busslinger also underwent a shoulder reconstruction in the off-season after the VFL Grand Final and is expected to be in full contact training by the pre-season camp on the Sunshine Coast at the start of February. 

The 2022 first-round pick broke through for a debut in 2025 after a long apprenticeship in the VFL and played seven senior games, before requiring a third shoulder reconstruction dating back to his draft year. 

New recruit Connor Budarick has settled in seamlessly at the kennel, making an early impression at training in defence, while Cooper Hynes, Josh Dolan, Arty Jones and Joel Freijah have burst out of the blocks this summer. 

Star small forward Cody Weightman isn’t training with the main group just yet, but has turned the corner over the past month, following a nightmare 2025 season. 

The 24-year-old didn’t play a game due to five different knee surgeries following complications with a damaged kneecap. 

Weightman trained at the club across the off-season and returned early with the first to fourth-year players, but will be meticulously managed across the summer in a bid to return early next season.