Cody Weightman is on the brink of returning to the Western Bulldogs after 20 months on the sidelines, with the forward having completed full training across May and now favoured to be back in the AFL side within the next fortnight.
The most likely opening is next Friday night against Hawthorn, though this weekend is also being considered as the club weighs how to reintroduce a player who has not featured at all in 2025. Weightman last played in the 2024 elimination final loss to Hawthorn, and his absence has stretched back through a series of knee operations linked to a rare congenital condition called bipartite patella.
For the Bulldogs, the timing matters because the search for a way back for Weightman is unfolding alongside a separate selection problem in the middle of the ground. Tim English missed a second game due to concussion on Sunday and has not yet completed training with the main group, the final step before a player can exit concussion protocols. The club is hopeful he will be cleared in time to face Collingwood on Saturday night, but it will not know until later in the week whether he is available.
Weightman’s return would give Luke Beveridge another line-breaking forward at a moment when the side has been forced to patch together its structure. In 2022, Weightman kicked 36 goals. He added 34 in 2023 and 27 in 2024 around elbow surgery, form that underlines how much the Bulldogs have missed his pressure and finishing touch during his latest layoff.
That need is sharper because English has now missed five of the past seven games and the club has already had to reach for stopgaps. Beveridge used Rory Lobb against Max Gawn in Sunday’s win over Melbourne, while Louis Emmett and Lachie Smith had not played at AFL level before English’s injuries. The coach has also used the extra man on the bench more sparingly than others across the AFL this year, which has left the Bulldogs thin when injuries hit.
The broader list squeeze is why the next few days matter more than a routine selection call. The Bulldogs are strongly considering adding a mature-age ruck at Tuesday night’s Mid-Season Rookie Draft, with Flynn Riley, Caleb May, Alex Van Wyk and Tom Scully among the options they are looking at. If Weightman comes back next Friday night or this weekend, it will help one end of the ground immediately. If English is not cleared, the club may have to fix the ruck problem in the market as well.
