WITH AFL pre-season preparations continuing, Melbourne GM of AFL Performance Alan Richardson has provided an update on the health of the Demons’ playing group.

Some key Demons, including Angus Brayshaw and Bayley Fritsch, have progressed well through their rehab, while Clayton Oliver has returned to the club after a period away to focus on his personal wellbeing.

Oliver, who is also working his way back from off-season knee surgery, won’t immediately join the main training group, instead adjusting to a modified program.

“Fundamentally it's just great to have Clayton back and it's great to see him with a smile on his face and feeling better,” Richardson said.

“He's done a lot of training himself. He's basically been in the hands of his medical team and that's gone really well for us and more importantly, it's gone well for Clayton.

“He'll still be doing ball work but on the side in the rehab group and we'll have to make sure we bring him up to speed from an educational point of view with any of the adjustments we've made to our game plan.”

Brayshaw has been integrating back into contact drills, following the concussion injury he sustained towards the end of the 2023 season.

“The last week or so he’s been in everything, and he's performed strongly,” Richardson said.

“He's feeling pretty comfortable, so we'll continue to monitor that as we go through.”

Sharpshooter Fritsch is another Demon who has impressed in match simulation after making his return to full fitness.

“Fritta’s done a good job, obviously he had some surgery on a foot in the off-season,” Richardson said.

“As we've stepped up the load, he's responded really well. He's been in full training and match sim the last couple of weeks.”

Meanwhile, key forward Harrison Petty, making a return from a Lisfranc injury, is being reintroduced to higher training loads.

“He's sort of in and out of training - that's the plan as we up the loads (and see) how he responds,” Richardson said.

“This week he's going to have a bit of a down week just to make sure that he can then bounce back strongly.

“In the limited match sim that he has been in, he's looked really impressive. We're excited by what Petts can do for us in front of the ball.”

Veteran Jake Melksham is powering through his ACL rehabilitation, responding well to his return program.

“He's ahead of schedule, Melky. He's a real pro, so it doesn't surprise us,” Richardson said.

“He's at a stage now where he's not too far off doing a bit of ball work. This week we've just backed him off a little bit, just to make sure that he continues to advance.”

Fellow forwards Ben Brown and Tom Fullarton have suffered recent injuries and are set for stints on the sidelines.

Brown had surgery last week on his knee.

“We know that Browny's got some challenges with his knees, but it's something he's had to deal with for some time now,” Richardson said.

“He’s a pro, he'll come back in about six or seven weeks. It could be a little bit earlier – it depends on how he responds but there's no rush with Browny.”

Fullarton sustained an ill-timed hamstring injury after a strong start to his career in red and blue.

“It's not on the minor scale. He's probably going to miss anywhere up to six weeks with that injury,” Richardson said.

“He'll make sure that he focuses really strongly on whatever he needs to do in his rehab program to get right.

“He's certainly won respect of his teammates, the way that he's attacked his training, whether that be the running or in the gym or out on the training track.”

Christian Salem has seen little interruption to his pre-season after a slight hamstring complaint.

“At training a couple of weeks ago (it was) one of those typical overstretch incidents where as he was kicking the ball, he got some contact from behind,” Richardson said.

“It’s very minor. He was back in training yesterday, so he'll just about be in full training from this point forward.”

Lachie Hunter is now racing the clock for the club’s Opening Round clash with Sydney.

“It's disappointing for Lach. He's had a calf that's nagged him a little bit,” Richardson said.

“As we've upped the load, he's just struggled to be able to cope. Clearly then you've got to back off and that's where it's at right at the minute.

“He’d need a little bit of luck now (to play Opening Round), but the guys are pretty confident they're on top of what the issue is.”

Finally, Matthew Jefferson and Andy Moniz-Wakfield are closing in on returns to full training after minor injuries.

“They're not far away from joining back in their training,” Richardson said.

“There's a lot of running going on, a lot of work in the gym. They’re do a fair bit of ball work, but not with the main group.”