FREMANTLE CEO Simon Garlick is confident key forward Jesse Hogan will return to the Dockers this season as he continues his period away from the club to focus on his mental health.
Hogan, who did not attend Thursday morning's season launch at Optus Stadium, took indefinite leave from the Dockers in January and has no timeline for his return.
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Garlick stopped short of predicting a return to the playing field in 2020, saying the football element of Hogan's return was secondary to his mental health and welfare.
But asked if he was confident the 25-year-old would return to the club this season, Garlick said: "I think at some point in time this year we're looking forward to having him back".
"All we're worried about is his health and wellbeing and welfare," Garlick told reporters at the Dockers' optimistic 2020 season launch.
"There are some really encouraging things that are happening with Jesse at the moment.
"We're really excited to welcome him back … (but) the timing and the football element will be secondary to making sure he's in the right space.
"We've got to make sure Jesse is in as good a space as he can be to confront everything he needs to."
The Dockers launched their new season with president Dale Alcock acknowledging the "significant amount of change" that had taken place last year with the sacking of coach Ross Lyon and CEO Steve Rosich.
The fresh leadership of Garlick and coach Justin Longmuir was setting the club in the right direction, the president said.
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"While many of the decisions that were made last year were difficult, the intention behind them was to ensure that we give ourselves the best possible chance to build the right culture and environment to allow our people to develop and flourish and be the best that they can be," Alcock said.
"I can inform you that as a board we know that we are absolutely heading in the right direction to make this a reality."
Captain Nat Fyfe set the tone of optimism for 2020, telling the audience September was not "some mythical, far-off land" and the new faces at Fremantle had brought a "new invigoration to our pre-season".
Longmuir had arrived as a "connector and a communicator", but also someone with a "ruthless work ethic", the skipper said.
The coach's new gameplan would take time to become ingrained, however, and for the players to move away from past habits in the heat of battle.
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"I wouldn't be surprised if we have a surge of momentum through the season when everything starts to make sense on a subconscious level," Fyfe side.
"Hopefully that happens sooner rather than later.
"We are a club that is preparing to play in a finals series with everything that we do.
"September is not some mythical, far-off land that we are never going to see.
"I stand here confident in our strategy but with a big dose of unknown about what we're capable of achieving."
