WEST Coast is weighing up recalling veteran Sharrod Wellingham and injecting the line-up with his "little bit of X-factor" for Saturday's night elimination final against Port Adelaide.

The out-of-contract utility's future has been a hot topic in recent months after he was twice dropped to the WAFL.

Wellingham hasn't played AFL since he was a late inclusion against Carlton in round 21, when he started the clash as a defensive forward – an area the Eagles have had issues.

Luke Partington has played that role alongside Jamie Cripps in the past five matches, while selection bolter Willie Rioli has been touted for a shock debut against the Power.

Eagles coach Adam Simpson was tight-lipped about team selection on Thursday, refusing to reveal who would be in the travelling party of 24 players.

But he hinted at one change to the side which upset Adelaide and indicated Welllingham was a chance to return after he racked up 30 touches and booted two goals in East Perth's last match of the WAFL season.

"He's been playing a little bit of a different role, we're trying to get him back into the side as a forward-mid and he's been doing that really well, so he's definitely in the mix," Simpson said.

"His experience, he's 28, so his ability to be pretty flexible is an asset to him and he's got a little bit of X-factor.

"So, along with others, there's potentially a spot there.

"Our experience tells us you can't just have one player having that (defensive forward) job.

"Teams now, and Port's the same, with rebounding half-backs it's really hard to stop with just one."

Restricting spring-heeled ruckman Paddy Ryder's influence around stoppages looms as West Coast's number one priority against the competition's best side at scoring from clearances.

Nathan Vardy has practiced negating Nic Naitanui's leap at training to prepare for the challenge, after twice lowering his colours to Ryder this year.

"(Ryder's) work around the ground is also pretty special, and his ability to take pack marks really hurt us last time," Simpson said.

"So we're going to do everything we can to nullify that with what we've got."

The Eagles, who couldn't consider young forward Jake Waterman (illness) for a debut, hope to hold a closed training session on Adelaide Oval on Friday, weather permitting.

Although West Coast will go into Saturday night's clash as underdogs – despite winning all three clashes against the Power at the venue – Simpson rebuffed claims the Eagles had a "free hit" after just scraping into finals.

"There's pressure on both sides, you can't say we've got nothing to lose," Simpson said.

"We want to play better than we did against Adelaide and we know we have to against a team that – when you look at their numbers – they're right up there with the best in the comp.

"They're a game-and-a-half off top spot, so for us to produce an effort that is going to get us a victory is going to take something special."