Fremantle midfielder Blake Acres will make his Freo debut against his former team in Saturday’s clash with St Kilda at Metricon Stadium. 

Acres’ selection was confirmed by senior coach Justin Longmuir on Thursday, who said Acres will find a home on the wing. 

“He will play his first game for the club…he was disappointed not to be in last week but that’s the sort of competitor he is,” Longmuir said.

“From day one we tried to settle him down on the wing and make him a one position player. 

“That’s what he wanted and that’s what we wanted too…rather than throwing him around in different positions.”

Longmuir said Acres, who was among Freo’s best in last week’s reserves match against Gold Coast, has provided valuable insight into his former St Kilda teammates. 

“(In last week’s reserves match) he communicated and was a bit of a wise head for the younger players,” Longmuir said. 

“He ticked all the boxes that he needed to and we’ll welcome him in for his first game. 

“He’s provided a few insights into some of (St Kilda’s) players and the way they go about it…he knows a lot of their players well.”

The return of defender Brennan Cox and skipper Nat Fyfe after one week on the sidelines with a hamstring injury, will depend on the pair's ability to get through Thursday’s main training session.

“Clearly, he has got to get through training and that’s the biggest test that he will have,” Longmuir said.

“He has ticked every other box…it’s always good to get players back in, especially when it’s a two-time Brownlow medallist. 

“The medical staff have done a great job and Nat has done a great job with his recovery. 

“It clearly wasn’t a serious injury, so if he’s right to go we will welcome him back.” 

In exciting news for Freo supporters, the club’s no.9 pick in the 2019 National Draft Liam Henry, will play half a game in Freo’s reserves match against Gold Coast on Friday.

It will be Henry’s first real hit-out in purple after being held back over the pre-season period with a knee injury. 

“It’s great for him, he put in a mountain of work back in Perth with Michael Johnson who spent a lot of time guiding him through some of the work he had to do,” Longmuir said.

“Liam came up here (to the Gold Coast) in great condition, so it will be great to see him out there.

“He’s obviously a highly rated player on our list and we need to get footy into him…it’s a great opportunity for him to get back out there and play with his new teammates.” 

Longmuir also gave updates on forward pair Cam McCarthy and Jesse Hogan. 

“Cam won’t play this week, he’s still working on aspects of his game, and still working his way back into full health,” Longmuir said.

“(Jesse has) never had a soft tissue injury I don’t think, he’s obviously had other issues with his foot so we will see how he pulls up.

“He might be right next week, it might be two weeks, so we’ll see.” 

Longmuir said he is hopeful the toe injury keeping key back Griffin Logue out of this week’s St Kilda clash will be a quick recovery.

“We’re still a little bit uncertain to be honest, he could be as good as one or two weeks but it could be a bit longer term,” Longmuir said. 

“We are really guided by how his toe pulls up and that comes down to individuals, everyone can pull up differently with the same injury.

“My fingers are crossed because he’s in such good form and he is clearly an important player for us.”