GREATER Western Sydney GIANTS ruckman Shane Mumford will train on Friday in a bid to play against the Brisbane Lions in his side's final NAB Challenge match on Sunday despite leaving the field injured in his comeback game last week.
Mumford played his first match since round 11 last season when the GIANTS defeated the Sydney Swans by 34 points on Friday night, but left the ground just after quarter-time after feeling pain in his left ankle.
It's the same ankle that needed season-ending surgery last year, but coach Leon Cameron said that after scans cleared Mumford of any major damage, he would hit the track on Friday in a bid to prove his fitness for the clash on the Gold Coast.
"He had a couple of bones jamming up against one another in his foot and felt a bit of pain towards the end of the first quarter last week," he said.
"The (medical) guys have done a bit of work on him and they're confident he's going to get up for Sunday.
"We know obviously he's important to our footy club, so if he's not right, he's not right, but we're confident that he'll play at least 70 per cent of the game."
In further good news for GWS on the injury front, emerging leaders Stephen Coniglio (hamstring) and Devon Smith (knee) have also been picked to take on the Lions at Metricon Stadium.
Coniglio, the stand-in captain in the Giants' first NAB Challenge match against the Western Bulldogs, was rested last week after feeling some tightness in his hamstring, while Smith will play his first game of the pre-season.
Talented defender Nick Haynes (groin) is back training with the main group and could return to play reserves in the next fortnight, with powerful backman Tim Mohr not far behind, meaning young midfielder Paul Ahern (knee) is the only GIANT in the rehab room.
It gives Cameron almost a full list to pick from ahead of the club's round one match against Melbourne at the MCG, and the senior coach is happy to have the selection headaches.
He'll take a strong squad into the club's final NAB Challenge game but said spots in his team to face the Demons were still up for grabs.
"Eighteen to 19 guys are probably picked out of the 22, thanks to a combination of their pre-season and their form in the NAB Challenge," Cameron said.
"There's probably two or three spots that could go either way and there's going to be some genuinely unlucky players.
"That's the nature of the game, and hopefully the guys in there cherish every minute they get and play like their life depends on it.
"When you start getting that in amongst your footy club you become more competitive, which leads to more wins, and hopefully we can become that sort of club this year.
"We don't hand out games."
