Geelong's Mark O'Connor poses for a photo during the team's photo day on February 1, 2022. Picture: AFL Photos

IRISHMAN Mark O'Connor remains in the hunt to face Essendon at the MCG on Saturday despite dealing with a frustrating end to the pre-season.

The 25-year-old was one of the more impressive trainers on the track across the first two months of the summer before being plagued by knee tendinitis.

O'Connor didn’t play against Richmond in the practice match at GMBHA Stadium late last month and missed the trip to face Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium in the AAMI Community Series last Monday night.

But after banking plenty of kilometres in his legs across the past few sessions, O'Connor is expected to return to full training on Wednesday in a bid to put his hand up for a spot in Chris Scott's 22 this weekend.

Port Adelaide's Dan Houston tackles Geelong's Mark O'Connor during the qualifying final on August 22, 2021. Picture: AFL Photos

Just when O'Connor looked set to go to another level last season, the County Kerry product suffered a few different hamstring strains, including one that ended his finals series in the first week.

Geelong defender Jack Henry will be available for selection this weekend after recovering from foot surgery at the start of the year that threatened to delay his start to 2022.

The 23-year-old, who finished runner-up in the 2021 Carji Greeves Medal behind triple All-Australian Tom Stewart, trained fully on Saturday and has had no issues with his foot after playing a VFL practice match against local side Newtown & Chilwell at Deakin University last Thursday night.

Geelong's Jack Henry looks to handball during the preliminary final against Melbourne on September 10, 2021. Picture: AFL Photos

The Cats plan for star midfielder Mitch Duncan to play at some level this weekend after working his way back from a calf strain.

Duncan didn’t play in either of the practice matches against the Tigers or the Suns, but the club hasn’t ruled out coming recalling the 30-year-old straight into the senior side rather than building some match fitness in the VFL.

Geelong's VFL side faces Essendon's reserves at NEC Hangar in Tullamarine a few hours before the two sides face off at the MCG in the seniors.

Sam Menegola has run out of time to prove his fitness in time for the season opener against the Bombers after undergoing a meniscal repair in Perth at the end of last season.

The 30-year-old, who has played 109 games in the hoops since being drafted from Subiaco at the end of 2015 following a year on Hawthorn's rookie list and two on Fremantle's without playing a game, is nearing a return after completing a power of running across the past month.

Menegola didn’t return to the club until the start of the year due to the border situation in Western Australia, but the highly regarded professional has ticked all the boxes in his recovery up until this point and should only be a matter of weeks away.

Geelong's Sam Menegola has been ruled out of the Cats' team after being concussed in his comeback VFL match last week. Picture: AFL Photos

Speedster Gary Rohan is projected to take a bit longer before being given the green light to return to action after an interrupted preparation heading into the 2022 campaign.

The former Swan has experienced nerve issues with his back and hip and hasn’t been able to build the base required at this point of proceedings, meaning he might not be sighted for the first few weeks of the season.

With Rohan and small forward Gryan Miers (syndesmosis) missing right now, senior coach Chris Scott is set to reignite the stalled AFL career of Tyson Stengle this weekend, following an impressive pre-season by the small forward.

Geelong signed the former Tiger and Crow as a delisted free agent at the start of November after Stengle booted 44 goals from 19 games in the SANFL in 2021, helping lead Woodville West-Torrens to back-to-back premierships.