Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir has revealed Nat Fyfe could make his return to action playing in the state league this weekend before stepping back into the AFL.
The Dockers are priced at 16/1 to win the 2022 AFL grand final but following a promising start they have lost the last two games and will be looking to bounce back when they face Melbourne at the MCG on Saturday.
Back-to-back defeats
It is a daunting task against the reigning premiers but Longmuir is not tempted to rush Fyfe back into the side. Instead he is more likely to figure in the WAFL for the first time in 12 years.
Fyfe has not played since undergoing a shoulder reconstruction while he has also suffered from a number of niggles, including a back issue that required minor surgery.
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"It's a serious consideration," Longmuir told reporters. "He hasn't played footy for a long time now, he is coming off a significant shoulder injury but also multiple little niggles.
"And really the decision will come down to what gives Nathan the best opportunity to get back to his best form and finish off the year strongly and set him up for the second half of the season. That's the consideration. We need to have a look at him this week to be able to make that final call."
Enforced changes
Meanwhile Longmuir says all the changes forced on his side in the last couple of weeks have not helped matters and they need to get back to having a settled line-up.
"We have just had so much disruption to our forward line so we need to just settle our team down again and get some continuity and form back first and foremost,” Longmuir added. "All we can do now is look forward and try and regain the cohesion we had prior to the last couple of weeks."
