The Western Bulldogs have confirmed the return of young forward Sam Darcy for Thursday night's affair with St Kilda.
Darcy has missed the past six matches in Luke Beveridge's side due to a knee injury sustained in the corresponding clash with the Saints in April.
The gun tall has been "scrupulous and professional" in his recovery to get himself ready for this week's clash at Marvel Stadium in what will be a great boost for the contending Bulldogs.
Speaking on Wednesday, Beveridge - who has been able to rely on the likes of Buku Khamis, Matt Kennedy and Rhylee West to lift in Darcy's absence - said the father-son forward will be a welcome addition to his side.
"Sam's ready to go, he'll be in the team when it's announced," the Dogs coach said.
"He's done a really scrupulous and professional job on rehabilitation from that injury. We'll welcome him back and look forward to having him part of tomorrow night.
"(The response from the other forwards) has been commendable for the boys who have shared the load, and our midfielders have kicked goals.
"Buku has added to that mix after Sam went down.
"We'll blend a little bit of ruck time (for Darcy) in there to make sure he's involved in the game. He's an enormous threat."
The Dogs will be forced into at least one change for Thursday night, having revealed wingman James Harmes has been suffering from delayed concussion symptoms in the wake of last week's loss to Hawthorn.
While Darcy will be one addition, Beveridge could look to one of Cooper Hynes, Caleb Poulter or Harvey Gallagher to face the Saints.
Beveridge is also set to continue using veteran Tom Liberatore in defence as part of his midfield rotation, having flagged the role initially with his premiership bull and reassured Liberatore of his importance as a midfield asset.
The change is set to continue this week, with Beveridge looking to get the most out of his engine room while saving Liberatore from tiring in the latter stages of his career.
"We've talked about it with Tom, and I've covered it over the last week or so with the players as well," Beveridge said.
"When you think of the coalface, how hard it is, you can't expect a player like Tom, who plays the way he does, to do it for as long as he does all the time.
"We're looking to lighten his load a little bit, maybe another layer for Tom, as we're hoping his future goes beyond this year.
"If Tom goes to half-back, it gives us some flexibility, and you know there's going to be integrity in his defensive game. So it all kind of makes sense without diminishing his importance.
"We might explore that a little bit here and there."
The Dogs and Saints will meet at Marvel Stadium on Thursday at 7:30 pm (AEST).
