He’s been strangely quiet of late, but Fremantle are confident antagonist Hayden Ballantyne will bounce back to form in Sunday’s AFL clash with Port Adelaide at Patersons Stadium. Ballantyne hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons in round one when his annoying tactics led to him being punched in the face by Geelong’s Matthew Scarlett. Scarlett was suspended for three weeks for the hit, while Ballantyne copped a two-match ban himself for a separate strike on Geelong’s Paul Chapman. Ballantyne played a key role in the upset win over the Cats with 20 possessions and two goals. But the 174cm pocket rocket hasn’t been nearly as influential in the three games since his return, booting just one goal and averaging 15 possessions. Ballantyne was heavily criticised last week for his undisciplined shove on Gold Coast’s Jared Brennan, which gifted the Suns midfielder a 50m penalty and a certain goal at a key point in the game. Ballantyne’s blushes were saved when Fremantle sneaked over the line by seven points, and Dockers defender Paul Duffield is confident his teammate will rediscover his top form soon. “I think Ballas’ form hasn’t been quite as good since he’s come back from that suspension. He knows that,” Duffield told Perth radio station 6PR. “But he’s a very talented player and he’ll be up and about. “He’s very important for us. His best football is ahead of him this year. “Hopefully we can get him back into sparkling form as soon as possible.” Port Adelaide enter the match amid growing scrutiny aimed at coach Matthew Primus, who has led his team to just nine wins from 27 games since taking over late in 2010. Fremantle (4-2) will be bolstered by the return of 211cm ruckman Aaron Sandilands, while Power pair Brett Ebert and Simon Phillips will play their first games of the year.