MELBOURNE is still yet to make a decision on whether star ruckman Max Gawn will make his return from injury against the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium on Sunday. 

The Demons have three six-day breaks in a row following their four-point win over Collingwood last Monday and Demons coach Simon Goodwin said that situation would be a decisive factor in pinpointing Gawn's return date. 

Gawn has not played since suffering a serious hamstring injury against Geelong in round three.

"He (Gawn) had a really strong training session yesterday and I know he's doing some recovery today and speaking a bit more with our medical team," Goodwin said on Wednesday.

"We'll make a decision later in the week but he's definitely in the frame. 

"We've got a whole range of situations we might be able to work through over the next three weeks but the sooner we get him back out there the better." 

Goodwin said the Demons were not locked into playing a recognised ruckman against the Bulldogs. 

Back-up ruckman Jake Spencer played his first game in the VFL on Saturday after seven weeks on the sidelines due to a shoulder injury and will come into consideration. 

'It's not a definite (playing a specialised ruckman). The team's been playing some pretty solid footy without a ruck," Goodwin said. 

"Jake (Spencer) played in the VFL at the weekend and performed reasonably well so it's definitely an option.

"It's just how long we can go without having a recognised ruckman. We'll decide that in match committee later in the week."

Star forward Jesse Hogan has had his return date pushed back slightly after being diagnosed with testicular cancer last month. 

The Demons listed Hogan as 4-6 weeks away from a comeback in their official injury list on Tuesday evening, but Goodwin said his return could be sooner. 

The 22-year-old had surgery to remove the cancer on May 16.

"Jesse's had a pretty significant operation so it's just his recovery period that's been a little bit longer," Goodwin said. 

"He'll do a few weeks of training and he could come to hand quite quickly so we're not definitely saying 4-6 weeks, we'll just take it every couple of weeks. 

"At the moment he's probably at least 2-3 weeks away… when Jesse's ready to play he'll be ready. We're not going to rush him back that's for sure."

Goodwin and Richmond coach Damian Hardwick were representing the AFL coaches in promoting the Chemist Warehouse Men's Health Week initiative to encourage people to quit smoking.