A lot will have to go right for luckless utility Nakia Cockatoo if he is to defy the odds and force his way into the Geelong side in time for the AFL finals.

But such is his game-changing potential and eye-catching talent that coach Chris Scott isn’t prepared to run a line through Cockatoo’s name either.

The 22-year-old finally made his return to the fray last weekend after more than a year on the sidelines with knee and soft-tissue injuries, playing half a match for the Cats’ VFL team.

He will be on limited minutes again this weekend at the second-tier level before stepping it up – fitness permitting.

With only three rounds of the home and away season to go – and the ladder-leading Cats enjoying a good overall run on the injury front – Cockatoo still has plenty to do if he is to force the hand of the Geelong selectors.

“He’s clearly got the talent but he hasn’t played for 12 months so he’d have to do a fair bit between now and us playing for him to prove that he was up to the job,” Scott told reporters on Wednesday.

“Finals tend to be pretty fierce encounters.

“But he does thrive in that environment as well – he’s that sort of player.”

After being selected by the Cats with pick 10 in the 2014 national draft, injuries have limited Cockatoo to just 34 senior matches in the best part of five seasons.

“We saw good signs from the little bit he played on the weekend, but there’s just too much water to flow under the bridge before we start getting our head around whether he could force his way into our team,” said Scott.

“We have pretty good availability now, we’ve got some good players who are starved of opportunity as it is.

“It’s complicated, even if Nakia was in good form and had some footy behind him and he’s still a way from proving that.

“We haven’t ruled it out.

“We’ve got a very open mind.”