North Melbourne's injury list will shorten on Sunday when Nathan Grima makes his long awaited return to football.

After almost three months on the sidelines, the key defender will play for Werribee on Sunday at Avalon Airport Oval.

There'll be no time to settle in for Grima, with a tough challenge in Port Melbourne awaiting. The Borough currently sits a game and a half clear on top of the ladder and possess the third best attack in the competition.

Alongside Grima, Scott McMahon will provide more defensive cover for John Lamont's side. Dropped from the North team after the loss to Carlton, a strong performance by McMahon will propel him right back into calculations for a recall.

Ben Brown and Mason Wood will form a dangerous combination forward. The duo will have spots in the senior side on their minds. For Brown he'll be looking for a quick return after a finger injury, while the newly re-signed Wood has been named as an emergency for Saturday's clash against Geelong, meaning he's inching closer to an AFL debut.

For North Ballarat, Trent Dumont will line up after completing a heavy training block over the last few weeks. With the aim to fast track the development of his outside game, Sunday will be the first glimpse at how the period has worked.

After earning a new one-year deal during the week, Eric Wallace will again be the Roosters' first choice ruckman against a standalone Coburg side. Coming off a 54 hit-out game before the bye against Bendigo, Wallace will be looking for more of the same.

Elsewhere Brad McKenzie and Liam Anthony will have to play strong games to get back into contention for a promotion. On what will likely be a muddy ground, conditions aren't expected to favour the two midfielders. However what it does mean is that a convincing performance may count for extra in the eyes of the match committee.

Werribee v Port Melbourne
Avalon Airport Oval
Sunday August 3
2:00pm

Probable North-listed players

- Scott McMahon
- Nathan Grima
- Taylor Hine
- Kieran Harper
- Mason Wood
- Ben Brown
- Kayne Turner
- Daniel Currie

Coburg v North Ballarat
Piranha Park (Coburg)
Sunday August 3
2:00pm

Probable North-listed players

- Max Warren
- Mitch Wilkins
- Trent Dumont
- Eric Wallace
- Liam Anthony
- Brad McKenzie