Hard-running midfielder Andrew Gaff and tall forward Hugh Dixon are both in the mix to return against Richmond at Optus Stadium on Friday night.

Gaff has been sidelined since round three by an ankle complaint but has been training with West Coast’s main group this week, while Dixon also got through Tuesday’s session in his bid to play after a week off with a calf strain.

“Andrew is a test this week. He’s done main training and we’ll see his response to that and he’s got another training session later in the week to see if he’s available for Friday,” Head of Health Mark Finucane told westcoasteagles.com.au.

“Hugh’s a test this week. He’s functioned well at training and we’ll monitor his response to training over the next day, and then another training session later in the week to put his hand up to be available for Friday.”

The Eagles will be forced into at least one change after midfield bull Elliot Yeo’s run of misfortune continued when he went down with concussion and was subbed out of the loss to Port Adelaide.

Yeo cannot return to play within a 12-day timeline from the incident, ruling him out of the Tigers meeting.

“Elliot sustained that concussion after a clash of heads in the game against Port. He enters the concussion protocols and has a really light start to the week to let his symptoms settle,” Finucane said.

Meanwhile, star ruckman Nic Naitanui (knee) is on the comeback trail from a medial ligament injury, and Oscar Allen continues to be treated carefully with his foot complaint.

“We’re taking a conservative approach with Oscar’s foot and monitoring its response to his progressions,” Finucane said.

“Nic is progressing really well with his knee. He’ll still be in the brace for a couple of weeks but he’s able to increase the range of movement that he has in that, which allows him to do more things in the gym and in his preparation for running.”

Dom Sheed (ankle) has been back running for several weeks and is expected to slot into training with the group next week, however Tom Joyce is further back in his progression after undergoing an ankle operation.

“Tom wasn’t progressing as we’d hoped with his ankle so we had some further investigation and a specialist’s opinion and the indication the best management was for surgery on the joint,” Finucane said.

“He’ll have a quiet first couple of weeks after surgery to let the swelling settle down and then we’ll have a better idea of his function and build from there.

“Dom has progressed really well through his running and his controlled rehab and we’re hoping to see him out training with the group in some skills next week as part of his progression.”

In a boost for the WAFL Eagles, young midfielder Zane Trew (shin) will return on restricted minutes for Saturday’s clash against Peel Thunder at Mineral Resources Park.

“We’re looking forward to seeing Zane building his minutes through the WAFL this week as part of his return to full fitness,” Finucane said.

Injury list:

Oscar Allen Foot TBC

Campbell Chesser Ankle Inactive

Tom Cole Ankle Inactive

Hugh Dixon Calf Test

Andrew Gaff Ankle Test

Tom Joyce Ankle TBC

Nic Naitanui Knee TBC

Dom Sheed Ankle 4 weeks

Zane Trew Shin Available

Elliot Yeo Concussion TBC