The devastating injury news to Sam Darcy has opened up a lot of questions for Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge to answer.
Darcy went down with what is suspected with a serious knee injury in Sunday's 71-point victory over St Kilda.
The Bulldogs are already missing spearhead forward Jamarra Ugle-Hagan due to personal leave, and he doesn't appear to be joining the senior side anytime soon.
As a result, Beveridge will need to reshuffle the forward line, and he got a brief look following Darcy's injury against the Saints.
"We've got role player options," Beveridge said.
"We swung James and Buku (Sunday). O'Donnell had been playing forward, and Buku as a key back, and we flipped them over.
"Buku and James can play either end. We think longer term, James is more of a key back for us.
"It's not in the Plan A to play Rory (Lobb) forward at the start of the game, but it is an option.
"And the other option is to play a bit smaller at times. But we need a second ruck, and it's hard rucking from your back end."
Absent from Sunday's victorious team, defenders Jedd Busslinger and Ryan Gardner featured in the VFL and could be brought in to help balance the senior side.
The pair haven't been seen at AFL level in 2025, with Busslinger expected to be handed a debut this year following consistent performances in the reserves.
Captain Marcus Bontempelli can spend more time in the front half as an attacking midfielder, while Joel Freijah's size (191cm) could help add height to the forward mix.
It is in these situations where Beveridge and his coaching group have historically thrived, utilising the underdog mentality to achieve what many pundits deem unlikely.
Saturday's contest against a well-balanced GWS outfit poses as the perfect test.
