Fremantle are in line to have sidelined forward Sam Switkowski back from mandated concussion protocols for next week's pre-season clash with Melbourne, while a senior pair could pull on Peek Thunder jumpers in their bids to return from summer setbacks.
Switkowski was the Dockers' main concern from their loss to the Indigenous All Stars earlier this month, with some friendly fire in the opening quarter leaving the 28-year-old dazed on the Optus Stadium turf.
The club eventually ruled Switkowski out from returning to the match and subsequently confirmed he had entered concussion protocols in what was a setback to the pressure forward's pre-season.
The extended gap between the All Stars game and the club's upcoming meeting with Melbourne will mean Switkowski would be able to feature in the latter should he be cleared at the end of his mandatory 12 days on the sidelines.
Speaking to the ABC,ย Dockers football boss Joe Brierty confirmed Switkowski was in the mix to face the Demons in Mandurah next Sunday.
"At this point in time he's actually on track to play against Melbourne," Brierty said.
"He's ticked all the boxes to date. He'll transition into some contact footy next week and planning that he can play some footy against Melbourne."
The Dockers are also dealing with a delicate approach to Sean Darcy's recovery from a troublesome knee injury.
The Fremantle ruckman faced a setback in the past fortnight when it was confirmed he would need a screw taken out of his ankle, adding to a frustrating pre-season to date.
Brierty said Darcy has been diligent in his rehabilitation and will look to ramp up his workloads over the next month.
"Having that (screw) taken out probably just slowed him down a little bit in terms of his on-field progression, but he'll transition back onto some loading over the next week or so and transition back into footy."
"He'll have a block of footy over three to four weeks and that'll make him available for selection. What level that's at from a competitive point of view... we'll get a better read on that in the coming weeks.
"The way Sean is approaching it with his investment and diligence with what has been a little bit frustrating over the last couple of weeks has been really pleasing."
The Dockers have stated they will 'take their time' with Darcy's recovery, meaning the Doig Medal winner could return via the WAFL with the Peel Thunder.
A similar path back to the AFL could be take by club great Nat Fyfe as he deals with his own knee issue, with a late-pre-season intra-club ahead of Round 1 in Fremantle's sights.
"The knee clean-up is going well. He's doing some decent loading now in footy circuits in his rehab program," Brierty said of Fyfe's recovery.
"I expect that he'll drip feed into main training over the next week or so and then look for him having some competitive hit-outs in the early part of the season.
"Probably the week before round one whether he can get some minutes in. Whether that's training with the AFL group or whether there's an opportunity with a Peel intra-club, then Round 1 flows into that.
"We expect to see him back with the main group in early March."
Fremantle will face Geelong in Round 1 of the 2025 AFL season when they fly to Kardinia Park on Saturday, March 15.
