Cats’ skipper says he’s ready for Friday’s NAB Challenge against the Dees in Alice Springs but first he must receive the nod from Cats medical and fitness staff.

From the beginning Joel Selwood said the minor procedure on his foot, which he had in the middle of January, wouldn’t keep him off the field for long.

“I’m definitely right to go,” Selwood told News Limited.

“I’m hoping to get to Alice Springs but it all depends on what the guys want to do with my fitness — if they put me out there or not, but I’m right to go.

Selwood admits that he has been running comfortably for approximately four weeks.

“I actually ran about six days after the operation, so they got me up and going pretty quickly,” Selwood said.

“It was just a scar really that we had to take some time and make sure that that healed.”

Despite the defect in his foot always being there, Selwood concedes that it wasn’t a concern during the duration of the 2013 season.

“No it wasn’t and probably one that I have had for a while, but it didn’t bug me at all,” Selwood said.

“It was just a muscle, an extra growth in my foot, I just stirred it up and then I couldn’t get it back right. It got to a stage where I tore it slightly.”

Selwood said it was “not the be-all and end-all” to play this Friday night against the Dees, although the run in his legs would be more beneficial than not.

“There is a lot of time throughout the season to get to the form that you want to, but it is nice just to be able to roll in also,” Selwood explained.

“I think the biggest thing being back out with the boys after having a lay-off period is just how quick the game is - and it keeps moving.

“Even for a guy like me that’s played a fair bit of footy, you just can’t pick it up that quick anymore.

“So guys coming off concussions and stuff like that, you can see why they’re just half a second slower (the next week).”

Selwood also confirms that the reason behind Hamish McIntosh’s absence in round 1 of the NAB Challenge wasn’t serious.

“He just had a really minor knee, that was probably 10 days before the Collingwood game where we pulled him out of training for two days,” Selwood said.

How frustrating it is for all parties, including coaches, players, Cats fans and of course McIntosh, Selwood says it’s a case of taking it carefully and not rushing his return.

“Hamish’s body sort of needs to get on a bit of momentum before he rolls into games.

“It’s getting frustrating for him because he is so close and could probably play but we just don’t want to have any hiccups with him.

Despite the Cats cautious approach the skipper believes McIntosh, who hasn’t played a game since Round 7, 2012, is on the verge of his comeback.

“He’s really in cotton wool at the moment but he is very close.”