With mooted No.1 ruckman Mark Jamar likely to be sidelined with a foot injury, Meesen has come into contention, considering emerging big man Jake Spencer is still a rookie.
Spencer can only be promoted if the club has a long-term injury, which points towards Meesen teaming up with ruckman/forward Paul Johnson against the Roos.
In the meantime, Meesen has the chance to show his wares against the Western Bulldogs at Casey Fields on Saturday, which is the final weekend of the NAB Challenge.
Melbourne coach Dean Bailey spoke about Meesen's progress during a training session at Casey on Tuesday.
"John Meesen's last couple of weeks haven't been too bad. He's been competitive in the ruck and we need another competitive effort from him this weekend,” Bailey said.
“We know that Paul Johnson is a very mobile running ruckman. I think those two ruck options are going to be good for us.
"John had an average up to Christmas [pre-season], but post-Christmas he's done everything and his last two weeks have been okay. Up against Brisbane he was good and the week before, we thought some of John's ruck work was pretty good.
"All of his GPS [readings] during games have been pretty promising – the distance he's running – so he's certainly improved a lot. Last year, he had a lot of interruptions and in the second half of the year, he had an ankle injury.
"John and Paul – they're both very good runners and they're both very mobile, so we think that's their strength."
Bailey said Meesen's mobility was a feature of his game.
"He's gaining a bit of confidence now and he's spent a lot of time getting stronger in the gym," he said.
"We know he's a fantastic aerobic runner, but it was his strength he needed to work on and he's been diligent in the gym and it's starting to pay off.
"His ruckwork was adequate for a bloke who has had a bit of an interrupted pre-season. It'll be a big test for him on Saturday at Casey, which will be good for John – he needs that challenge."
Meanwhile, Bailey said forward Austin Wonaeamirri won't play against the Dogs, due to his hamstring injury sustained against Hawthorn in Melbourne's NAB Cup defeat at Aurora Stadium.
"Most of the injured guys are another week or two away from playing. Wonaeamirri is probably available on the weekend break that we have, but most of the blokes are another week away," he said.
