MELBOURNE is ready to make its annual trip to the nation's red centre with a Giant challenge lying in wait.

The Demons will play a fifth match without star midfielder Clayton Oliver, with scans confirming his hamstring was yet to fully heal.

Jake Bowey and Ben Brown have raised their hands for selection, while Michael Hibberd will miss following his heroic efforts to play through injury last week in Geelong.

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Clayton’s Scan Results

"He’s no doubt tracking in the right direction from a hamstring perspective," Goodwin says.

"The scan did show that it was pretty much what Clayton was feeling, that he couldn't get to maximum speed because it still wasn't fully healed yet.

"He clearly won't play this week, but he will train today. He's tracking in the right direction.  We'll try and tick off his max speed next week, which he needs to hit to be available to play.

"We're hopeful that without any other setback and him continuing to feel better that he'll play the following week."

Hibberd’s Heroics

"It's pretty serious injury in a lot of ways," Goodwin says.

"He had a laceration to the kidney, anything that's internal we've got to take with a great deal of caution.

"He’ll still be able to continue to train and do some physical activity,  but it's just that contact that he certainly won't have any dealings with in the next few weeks.

"We're hopeful he'll be back within three weeks, but it could be four. But we'll just wait and see and see how he's recovering and see how he's feeling.

"It's incredible how he actually got through the game. It's enormous courage to have a hit like that early in the game and to continue to play and play at the level that he did was unbelievable."

Hall of Fame Choco

"It's been a lifelong journey for Choco in the game and what he's given the game is incredible," Goodwin says.

"What he gives us as a as a club is so unique. He loves the game, he's got great passion for the game and you couldn't think of a better person and a more deserving person to be in the Hall of Fame than Choco."

Bowey Bounces Back

"He played an outstanding game in the VFL coming back from a concussion protocol and certainly put his hand up for selection there's no doubt about that," Goodwin says.

"He's a high-quality player that plays the game the right way and we're excited about what he can bring to the team in the not-too-distant future."

Traeger Park Conditions

"It's been one of our home away from homes for a number of years now," Goodwin says.

"We've really enjoyed playing in Alice. We know the ground shape, we know the conditions of what it would potentially be like when we're up there and we're going to be ready for it."

A Giant Challenge

"GWS are playing as good footy as anyone in the competition at the moment, especially with the ball and around stoppage and contests," Goodwin says.

"They’re incredibly strong, they're hitting the scoreboard, they're moving the ball with great efficiency.

"We know what we're up against, we're up against the side that's playing finals like footy."

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Dees Travel Plans

"We've got a couple of players traveling up on Friday to do some community work," Goodwin says.

"We’re really proud of the work that we're doing in the Santa Teresa region with the Indigenous community and it’s been something that we've been really proud about that as a club."

Tap Brothers Chemistry

"We couldn't be happier in terms of the combination of what they're delivering from a ruck perspective," Goodwin says.

"Especially in the last month our stoppage game has got going and we're starting to be a really dominant team around the ball.

"That was really the plan throughout the whole time of having this combination together. Clearly we'd like to get more out of them forward of center."

Forward Form

"It’s an area of our game, our inside 50 connection and our ability to hit the scoreboard that was really strong in the first eight to 10 weeks of the season," Goodwin says.

"Clearly in the last four or five weeks, you know, we need to be better. 

"We're not connecting as well as we should and we're not  probably taking our goalkicking and efficiency to the level that we need to be. So it's an area of our game that we're not living in denial about.

"You look at your personnel, you look at how you how you're entering the ball and what type of entries you're getting.

"Browny (Ben Brown) has come back into some really good form in the VFL and got his body to a really good position. He's coming right back into calculations around selection and we'll have a look at that in the next few days.

"Tommy Mac (Tom McDonald), he's had ankle surgery and it's probably three or four weeks away at the moment."