Fremantle will not be looking at resting star Luke Jackson amid a record 14-game win streak, instead, they will use him sparingly during games.
Jackson is arguably in Brownlow Medal contention, playing as the No.1 ruck for the Dockers, who sit two games clear on top of the ladder.
Mason Cox has been playing second fiddle, but on Sunday against Gold Coast at Optus Stadium, Sean Darcy was brought in for his first game this season.
Jackson played 67 percent of centre ball-ups, with Darcy picking up the remainder.
"It's about looking to do it in-game more than anything, if we get the opportunity," Dockers coach Justin Longmuir said.
"That's why we made sure Sean's fitness got up to a level in the WAFL before we played him, so that he could be able to handle a little bit more workload as the season unfolds.
"We've just got to try and find the balance between allowing players to maintain their form but also give them a bit of a workload reduction at the right time.
"We'll try and strike that balance."
The pair will be better for the run together, even though Fremantle lost the clearance count 24 to 36.
Longmuir also lauded the efforts one Brennan Cox, who he deems as one of the "most underrated" defenders in the competition.
Cox was tasked with curbing the influence of Coleman Medal leader Ben King. He limited the star Sun to one goal and two behinds from seven disposals.
King also took one mark for the contest.
"Brennan Cox is probably the most underrated key back in the comp, and probably has been for a while," Longmuir said.
"Not only was he able to negate King, but I thought he was able to win the ball back a lot, and especially in that last quarter.
"Our backs are working really well together, but they're getting good support from up the ground as well."
