STAR West Coast midfielder Andrew Gaff's rise to become "a pretty special player" provides a blueprint for Fremantle young guns Andrew Brayshaw and Adam Cerra to follow, coach Ross Lyon says.
Renowned for most of his career as an outside runner, Gaff has developed into a complete onballer, capable of winning his own footy and hurting opponents on the scoreboard.
It is little wonder Victorian clubs are lining up to lure the restricted free agent home, and shutting down Gaff will be high on Lyon's agenda heading into Sunday's 48th Western Derby.
In his past three derbies, the 26-year-old has racked up 32, 35 and 34 disposals, and limiting Gaff's influence will be crucial if Freo is to end a six-game losing streak to its crosstown rivals.
"He's a superstar," Lyon said of Gaff.
"I remember from '12 to now, he's really toughened up. He's a hard ball-winner, he can go inside, he's almost the complete mid, really.
"He's unassuming, he's a humble guy and he's a pretty special player for their club.
"That's what we need Cerra to become, and Brayshaw to become and (David) Mundy is for us.
"They would learn (by playing on him but) he's an enormous runner, he runs as big as anyone in the competition, so we'd more put someone like a (Ed) Langdon, (Tommy) Sheridan-type that could run with him.
"Because if you're going to go with him, you want to bring 17 kilometres in your back pocket."
Lyon was tight-lipped about Fremantle's selection for the derby, although spearhead Matt Taberner is expected to play his first game since breaking his foot in round five.
Taberner booted three goals and looked threatening in his return at Peel last Saturday.
"The likelihood is he'll come in, but after his first game he was a little bit sore," Lyon said.
"(We) don't count our chickens … but it would be nice to have a little bit of height there.
"They're a really good roll-around defence. (Jeremy) McGovern and (Tom) Barrass are really strong in the air with those intercept marks.
"It would be nice to bring those to ground, and Matthew can help with that."
The Dockers could restock their forward line after averaging only 59 points for in the past five rounds, with Cam McCarthy, Hayden Ballantyne and pressure forward Brady Grey in the mix.
Lyon insisted Freo's midfield being badly beaten in the supply battle was the more pressing issue, with the Dockers minus-80 in inside 50s combined in those five games, only finishing ahead of the ledger against Port Adelaide in round 17.
"Mundy and (Lachie) Neale played really well – and Sean Darcy – against Port Adelaide but since then we've struggled in there," Lyon said.
"You're never just going to replace (Nat) Fyfe, (Aaron) Sandilands and (Connor) Blakely overnight, but the young guys, we're buying them experience and that's a stated objective.
"There's still a few who want to focus on wins and losses, but I wouldn't have thought that's our clear KPI."
The Dockers have slipped behind 20-27 overall in the derby win-loss record, and while Lyon is determined to end their losing streak, he has the bigger picture in mind.
"There's bragging rights and all those things but, at the minute, they've proven to be a better football team than we are over a journey over the last couple of years," he said.
"No one is running away from that, but we're working hard to improve our football and build our list.
"Ultimately, if we keep our shoulder to the wheel, over a long period of time and everyone plays their role, we'll get to where we want to go."
