Fremantle have made two forced changes to their starting 22 for Saturday night’s clash with Richmond at Optus Stadium.
A substitute against Narrm in round 11, forward Sam Sturt has come into the team.
He is joined by winger / forward Liam Henry, who will play his first game since round four against Adelaide.
The pair replace the injured Sean Darcy and suspended Jaeger O’Meara.
Michael Walters will make his return as the substitute as he builds his minutes after sitting out the Narrm clash.
It is the second time Walters has been used as the substitute this year, coming on against North Melbourne in the third term and kicking two goals.
Midfielder Neil Erasmus and forwards Josh Corbett and Tom Emmett have been named as the emergencies, with Emmett named in the squad for the first time.
Will Brodie was unavailable for selection at both AFL and WAFL level after sustaining an ankle injury during Wednesday’s main training session.
In Henry’s past four WAFL appearances, the 21-year-old has averaged 24 disposals and six tackles per game while kicking four goals.
Sturt has seven goals from four WAFL games in 2023, most recently kicking two goals to go with his 17 disposals on Sunday against Subiaco.
Senior Coach Justin Longmuir said Henry and Sturt were among several players who had put their name forward for selection in the WAFL with Peel Thunder in second place on the WAFL ladder.
“We’ve had some really good form down at Peel and a lot of the guys are banging the door down,” Longmuir said.
“With Sean and Jaeger being out of the team this week, it opens up a few opportunities.”
Fremantle are looking to keep in touch with the top eight, sitting outside of finals contention on percentage in 10th with a 6-5 record.
Geelong (eighth), Adelaide (ninth) and Gold Coast (11th) join Freo on 24 points, however Fremantle have played one fewer game after their round 12 bye.
Richmond are in 13th with a 4-7 record and are coming off a closely-fought away win against GWS.
Bounce down for the clash is at 5.25pm with tickets on sale through Ticketmaster.
TEAM
IN: Sam Sturt, Liam Henry, Michael Walters (sub)
OUT: Sean Darcy, Jaeger O’Meara
B: Brennan Cox, Alex Pearce, Hayden Young
HB: Brandon Walker, Luke Ryan, James Aish
C: Jordan Clark, Caleb Serong, Nathan O’Driscoll
HF: Josh Treacy, Nat Fyfe, Michael Frederick
F: Sam Switkowski, Jye Amiss, Lachie Schultz
R/Fol: Luke Jackson, Andrew Brayshaw, Matthew Johnson
I: Bailey Banfield, Sam Sturt, Liam Henry, Ethan Hughes
S: Michael Walters
E: Neil Erasmus, Josh Corbett, Tom Emmett
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