Star Fremantle midfielder Nat Fyfe is training the house down but Dockers coach Ross Lyon says the 20-year-old is still at least three weeks away from an AFL return.
Fyfe twice dislocated his troublesome left shoulder earlier this year before being sent in for surgery.
Fremantle’s midfield has struggled to cope at times without the classy on-baller, but Lyon said the club was taking a careful approach with Fyfe given his history of shoulder problems.
“Nat Fyfe is absolutely tearing the house down with work, but he’ll be round 18, if that,” Lyon said.
The Dockers take on Melbourne (away) and GWS (home) before tackling Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium in round 18.
Defender Zac Dawson, who has missed the past three games with a knee injury, is a chance to return for Saturday’s clash with Melbourne at Etihad Stadium.
And fellow backman Antoni Grover will be assessed this week after copping an accidental elbow to the head in a mid-air collision during Sunday’s 38-point win over the Western Bulldogs.
Lyon said he was proud of the way Grover put his body on the line in his first match of the year.
“We’re really hopeful that he’ll come up and get him ready for Melbourne because players that do that are what you build a club on,” Lyon said.
“That’s what we’re about, building on a good foundation that we’ve got in place. We want to be a hard-edged AFL team.”
Fremantle’s seventh win of the season left them just percentage adrift of eighth spot.
But Lyon felt his team were still too handball-happy at times, and needed to become more direct to match it with the top sides in the competition.
Dockers skipper Matthew Pavlich, who booted six goals against the Bulldogs, said his team’s more direct approach in the game-defining third quarter was the blueprint for future success.
“I think it gives the guys a really clear path about what is success, and how we should play,” Pavlich said.
“We’re still not perfect, I think that’s the main message.
“We’ve still got a lot to work on, but when we’re playing our best it does mean we are penetrating a bit more.”