Blue-chip recruit George Wardlaw will complete a strength and conditioning phase as he pursues an early-season return.

Plucked from the Oakleigh Chargers in November, Wardlaw was the highest-rated onballer in the open draft, but his junior football was impacted by illness and injury.

Having initially fielded him with the main training group, the club has since designed a program to prime the powerful midfielder for his return.

"George is in a purely reconditioning phase," head of performance Kevin White told North Media.

"He's had a lot of interruptions over the last two years; he had COVID two years ago and a series of soft tissue injuries last year.

"When he was integrated into main training at the start, some of the baseline testing with his strength and fitness showed that he was a little bit off where the main group is.

"(However) for his power measurements in the gym, he was No.1 at the club."

The high performance team decided to take the 18-year-old out of the main group, and tailored a six-week program to improve his baseline strength and conditioning.

"(We'll) re-assess after that six-week block where George sits to reintegrate among the main group, and look towards games and beyond."

Recruit Griffin Logue is on track for the opening round, and will feature in Saturday morning's intraclub match.

Having overcome osteitis pubis, the former Fremantle tall dislocated a finger and split the skin in his first match simulation.

"There was no fracture in the bone, but because the skin had split he was left with a wound that he couldn't (allow to) get infected over the next eight days," White detailed.

"He's recently rejoined the main group again, and he's progressing really nicely.

"We’re looking at a half-load of the intraclub, building to a three-quarter load in the Richmond game and a full game against the Bulldogs in the third week."

>> Click here for the full injury list

Darcy Tucker, who arrived alongside Logue after seven seasons in the west, has returned to the main training group and is set to feature in the final practice match.

"Darcy's going really well," White confirmed.

"The plan for him over the next three week period is high loading sessions over the weekends when the boys have the intraclub and the Richmond hitout.

"He'll look to re-join for that third game."

Brayden George's return is gathering momentum, the former Murray Bushranger having resumed running on Tuesday evening.

An explosive forward who can pinch hit up the ground, George ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in August in his final appearance as a junior.

When the group returned from its AFL Community Camp, his teammates joined him for his first run as a North Melbourne player.

"It was a feel-good story," White smiled.

"The beauty now is that we've got a long period of time to work with him.

"He's got really strong attributes as an athlete, and to be able to harness that in a methodical, one-on-one way out on the ground is a big step for him.

"(We'll) improve his running mechanics, base fitness and sprint ability in the back end, and build that bridge for him to be right to go again."

Defender Aidan Corr is making steady progress from a calf setback he experienced in the lead-up to Christmas.

"He entered the main group about two weeks ago," White outlined.

"This weekend we'll look to extend … building him into game load conditioning, and setting him up for a half when we play against Richmond."

Aaron Hall is similarly taking it slow, having grappled with Achilles soreness over summer.

"(As he's a) highly explosive athlete, we've just got to take care that he's got no soreness in his training, so right now he's really controlling his loads," White explained.

"We envisage over the next two-to-three weeks that he'll slip back into the main group once that pain and awareness settles."

White confirmed Curtis Taylor is "tracking nicely," following a calf strain sustained in training three weeks ago.

The 22-year-old will complete a block of training along with Tucker and Corr on the weekend, and looks set to compete in the following weekend's practice match.