Some things like Callum Wilkie’s form may be as “clear as the nose on his face”, but Ross Lyon says it's too early to make a call on if and where Max King will be playing this week. 

King has dominated headlines as he closes in on a return following pre-season shoulder surgery, but Lyon and the Saints won’t be rushing him back if he’s not fully fit, despite the heightened attention.

“He’s been pretty good, he just had a little niggle on the weekend… sore arm, sore butt, sore groin… I think someone corked him,” Lyon said at this morning’s press conference.

“I’ve got to check in with Max yet, I just sort of let him go, but hopefully he trains fully today and when he jumps that hurdle we’ll have match committee later in the week.

“You’d like him to come in fresh. If there’s any doubt on him and he doesn’t go ‘look I’m 100 per cent’, I don’t think we even consider him. Once he declares that we’ll decide where he’s going to play.

“It’s a big decision because he hasn’t played, but he’s really tall so we could do with a little bit of height there.”

St Kilda is suddenly flush for options up forward after being hit hard by injury to start the year.

Anthony Caminiti is due to return from suspension and could slot back into the line-up, as could Zaine Cordy, who was omitted for the first time last week after featuring in the Saints’ first seven matches of the season.

Jack Billings is also building back from a fractured leg and has spent the past fortnight increasing his output in the VFL, while Jimmy Webster re-joined main training today following a fractured cheekbone.

The Saints also remain hopeful Jade Gresham and Rowan Marshall will be available for selection after being rested during last Sunday’s game following a respective knee knock and rolled ankle.

“It’s a nice dilemma to have, but it brings its own sort of stress. You’ve got to pull the right lever, right?” Lyon said.

The Saints will make their second trip to South Australia this week to face Adelaide, who currently sit just outside the top-eight with a 4-4 record after a hard-fought display against the reigning premiers, Geelong.

“They’ve been incredibly competitive: they’re hard, they’re tough, they spread,” Lyon said.

“You can’t sneak your way forward in AFL footy, so we’re up for the challenge and we accept the challenge. We’re going to lean into it.”