Bailey Smith in action during the Western Bulldogs' clash with Richmond in round four, 2023. Picture: AFL Photos

WESTERN Bulldogs star Bailey Smith will miss this weekend's trip to Adelaide for Gather Round and at least next Friday night's fixture against Fremantle at Optus Stadium due to a minor calf strain.

The 22-year-old was ruled out of Saturday night's game against Port Adelaide Oval on Thursday after reporting calf tightness following the five-point win over Richmond last Saturday. 

With a six-day turnaround between round five and round six – and two games on the road – the Dogs will head to Perth on Monday to prepare for the Dockers, rather than returning to Melbourne between fixtures. 

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The Dogs are taking a travelling party of 25 players for the next eight days, but will fly others in if required. 

Smith will remain home during this period to accelerate his recovery and get on top of an issue that caused him to train away from the main group in January. 

The club is hopeful the midfielder will be available when the club returns from Western Australia to host Hawthorn at Marvel Stadium on Saturday, April 29 in round seven. 

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"(Smith's) got a calf injury and he'll be out for a couple of weeks. Beyond that, I'm not sure," Beveridge told reporters.

"Bit ginger after training so he had a scan. Little bit up. So no risk.

"We've got a squad of 25 on the road, Fremantle in Perth the following Friday, we're going to stay away. So it's a quirk of the schedule.

"We've asked everyone to come away for a week and it's too much risk with Bailey. So he'll stay back, miss a couple and we'll work it out from there."

Bailey Smith in action during the Western Bulldogs' clash with St Kilda in round two. Picture: AFL Photos

The Western Bulldogs will regain Cody Weightman for the first time in 2023 after the gun small forward was cleared to return from an adductor injury earlier in the week.

Weightman suffered the issue in February and has had to be carefully managed since then to ensure his return wouldn't be delayed until later in the year.

Luke Beveridge has chosen to go with Tim O'Brien instead of Ryan Gardner to replace Alex Keath, after the key defender entered concussion protocols last weekend following a collision with Richmond key forward Tom Lynch.

Gardner was one of the most improved players at Whitten Oval in 2022, but has struggled to build a case to return after recovering from elbow surgery before spending the past fortnight in the VFL. 

O'Brien hasn't played a senior game since round 16 last year and endured a frustrating summer at Skinner Reserve, suffering several soft-tissue setbacks. 

Tim O'Brien and Ryan Gardner during the Western Bulldogs' photo day in February 2023. Picture: AFL Photos

Hayden Crozier failed to prove his fitness in time for the trip to Adelaide after being substituted out of the game against the Tigers with a back issue, while Taylor Duryea has been recalled after spending last weekend at Footscray. 

After a disappointing opening fortnight of 2023, the Dogs have beaten two sides that played finals last year – Brisbane and Richmond – to kickstart the season ahead of an enthralling encounter at the Adelaide Oval. 

Favourite son Tom Liberatore will become just the 22nd player in the history of the Western Bulldogs to play 200 games when he runs out against the Power.