FREMANTLE coach Justin Longmuir has defended the decision to play Nat Fyfe last week so soon after his hamstring injury, pointing to a Western Derby rival as proof of how common it is.
Scans on Wednesday revealed the Dockers' captain and superstar had suffered further damage to the same hamstring that kept him out of their round five clash with Adelaide a fortnight ago.
That news came as West Coast skipper Luke Shuey prepares to return from his own hamstring injury, after missing only last week's victory over the Crows.
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Longmuir was adamant on Friday the club's medicos had not made a mistake in approving Fyfe's selection despite him now facing multiple weeks on the sidelines.
"I know there's a lot of commentary around Nathan's hammy at the moment (but) it's not unusual for players to play after one week with a hammy," Longmuir said.
"It's happened a lot in our history and it's happening a lot around the AFL at the moment.
"Just to give you some understanding around Nathan's hammy; he was passed fit to play Tuesday (last week) after his rehab session, where he ticked all the protocols we assess hammies with.
"That gave him a full week of training going into the game. It's unfortunate he's re-injured the hammy ... and we wish he didn't re-injure his hammy but I wouldn't take it back."
Longmuir said Fremantle was constantly reviewing its medical and training procedures and that "clearly we'd like a fitter list to choose from".
Fellow senior regulars Jesse Hogan (calf) and Reece Conca (hamstring) are also out with soft-tissue setbacks but that is a trend across all clubs in this year's unusual circumstances.
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Longmuir expected ruckman Sean Darcy (concussion) to recover in time to play in Sunday's Western Derby against the Eagles, in front of a likely 30,000-strong Optus Stadium crowd.
He also tipped Brennan Cox (hip) to replace Hayden Young (ankle).
However, the first-year coach stopped short of rubber-stamping any of Connor Blakely, Brandon Matera and potential debutants Michael Frederick, Tobe Watson or Lloyd Meek.
