Melbourne fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen has resumed running on grass in the clearest sign yet he is approaching a long-awaited return from his knee injury.
But coach Craig Bellamy is still hesitant to confirm when the 24-year-old will be back on the park.
Papenhuyzen has not played since mid-July, when he fractured his kneecap in a tackle with Canberra five-eighth Jack Wighton that left him in significant pain.
Papenhuyzen began a lengthy recovery process that took him to Philadelphia to consult with Bill Knowles, the reconditioning specialist who worked with Latrell Mitchell and Tom Trbojevic on their own injuries.
He had originally been expected to return between NRL rounds six and eight and began running on a treadmill again before graduating to sand.
The fullback started running on grass this week, which Bellamy said boded well for a Storm side in the midst of a personnel crisis.
"He's made a little progress. He's actually started to run on land," Bellamy said.
"I think that's a progression, I'm not quite sure how much of a progression."
Bellamy was reluctant to confirm a timeline on his fullback's return to play, however.
"Obviously we don't want to take any chances," he said.
"It's been a long process. There's still a little bit of work to go, I would imagine.
"But you'd like to think that's a real positive step forward. We'll just have to see how we go from there."
Melbourne are also missing Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Tepai Moeroa and Dean Ieremia to injury, while halfback Jahrome Hughes is suspended until next week.
