Fremantle Dockers captain Alex Pearce ruled out of clash against Collingwood Magpies amid persistent shin pain
Pearce has played only one game since reporting leg pain following the club's round 11 win over Port Adelaide. He missed victories over Gold Coast, Essendon, North Melbourne and St Kilda, and also had a week off due to Fremantle's bye before returning to face Sydney in round 17.
But the experienced big man again pulled up sore and sat out last weekend's win over Hawthorn. Now he won't play against Collingwood at the MCG on Sunday and is in doubt for the Western Derby the following week.
That could leave him with only four games to build fitness at the end of the season while the club is fighting for a finals spot.
'Moose is still dealing with a little bit of awareness down in that area, so he's going to be around one to two weeks away,' Fremantle High Performance Manager Phil Merriman said.
But in positive news, midfielder Hayden Young only has to get through training to be declared available to play for the first time since round eight.
Fremantle must decide whether he is ready to play a full game, play as the sub or build match fitness through the WAFL. But forward Michael Frederick said the team was eagerly anticipating the impact his kicking would have on the group.
'You get a lot of confidence from it,' Frederick said.
'I'm sure the big boys like Josh Treacy and Jye Amiss love it. We always want the ball in his hands because he can create so much for us. For him to hopefully come back this week would be nice and add to what we're trying to strive for.
'He's done a mountain of work, and I know he's not far. Knowing what he can add to the team - he hasn't played too many games this year, and it'd be nice to see him in the midfield with Andy and Shai, and Caleb. It adds another strength to us.
'He's been someone that's been able to play in multiple positions well. I'm certainly excited, and I'm sure he is to. He'd be itching for it.'
The Dockers' injury list is rapidly shrinking. Will Brodie is on track to play in the WAFL after recovering from concussion, while Nat Fyfe (calf) and Cooper Simpson (AC joint) are now listed as only one week away.
When Pearce, Fyfe and Simpson return, the Dockers will only have rookie Aiden Riddle (foot) and inactive youngster Odin Jones (back) unavailable.
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