Hugh McMeniman, Clinton Schifcofske, Andrew Brown, Sean Hardman and Berrick Barnes all return from the injured list and will be available for selection against the third-placed Sharks when the team is decided this week.

Dynamic lock Hugh McMeniman makes a welcome return after more than six weeks on the sidelines after he strained his right ankle in the Reds Round Two loss to the Crusaders in Christchurch.

McMeniman admitted it's been hard watching his team struggle from the sidelines but is optimistic the Reds can finish the season strongly.

"It's been real tough, especially the way the boys have been going," McMeniman said.

"We're going to turn that around, we've got five games to go and we hope to win all five," he said.

Reds head coach Eddie Jones said the return of the injured players had given the squad a real lift but he is wary of a dangerous Sharks outfit coming off a loss to the Western Force in Perth last week.

"They [the Sharks] definitely looked a little bit flat last week, but having said that they are very good side.

"The reason they are in the top half of the four is because they have a very strong and abrasive forward pack, they've got some genuine pace out wide and a very good half back in (Ruan) Pienaar," Jones said.