WESTERN Bulldogs captain Matthew Boyd has been cleared by medical staff to complete full training ahead of his team’s Round 17 clash against Hawthorn.

Boyd has been on the sidelines for two weeks after fracturing his cheekbone against Melbourne in Round 14 and is listed as still being 1-2 weeks away from a return on the club’s official injury list.

But given he has been cleared to return to full training and the tough, hard-nosed leader and competitor he is, it wouldn’t surprise many if he pushed for selection against the Hawks.

Western Bulldogs Medical Services Manager, Andrew McKenzie said Boyd’s recovery is ahead of schedule.

“‘Boydy’ has seen the specialist last week and he was very happy with his progress,” he told the club’s website.

“He’s given him the all clear to return to full training, we will see how he goes over the week.”

Already this season we have seen Carlton skipper Marc Murphy return just one week after suffering the same injury.

Murphy wore a helmet against Collingwood in his return match in Round 15 and also wore the protective headwear against the Saints last Saturday night.

He gathered 18 touches against the Pies but received strong criticism from media commentators about his game, declaring he had returned too soon after his injury.

He led his team to victory, however, on Saturday night against St Kilda with a 20 disposal effort at Etihad Stadium.