FREMANTLE key position player Luke McPharlin says he will return to a more permanent defensive role this year as he looks to atone for a disappointing 2009 season.

As teammate Chris Tarrant emerged as an elite backman, McPharlin was shifted forward but managed just 20 goals from his 18 games.

McPharlin, 28, had found his best form in 2007 and 2008, finishing third in Fremantle's club champion award both years.

"It was a bit of a different year for me last year, but I'm looking forward to returning to defence," he said on Thursday, adding he was in the best shape of his 151-game career.

"It's just one of those things in football when you've got a developing team, some guys have to be moved around and fill roles that perhaps aren't their strongest position.

"I don't rule out playing a bit of a swingman role through the year, but I think I've played my best football in defence and I look forward to returning there.

"I'm looking forward to playing with Tarrant. It's something I've wanted to do for a while and I think it'll hopefully be a pretty good partnership."

McPharlin was a notable omission from Fremantle's leadership group for 2010, but he said with 23 young players arriving at the club in the last two years it was time to step aside.

"I decided not to nominate this year," he said. "We've got an emerging team with some young leaders coming through. I think it's about time, particularly because the weight of numbers is so much younger, that someone else steps up.

"I've been in the leadership group for a number of years [so] I thought it was about time we saw a bit of a passing of the baton."

Fremantle returned to training this week and assistant coach Dean Wallis nominated McPharlin as one of the standout performers in the early stages of the summer program.

Indeed, McPharlin said he had surprised himself with his pre-season form, particularly given his injury history.

"I rarely do a lot of pre-season just because of how my body is," he said. "But thankfully the fitness staff have been terrific and the physio staff are working very closely with me to allow me to do as much training as I can this time of year.

"Fortunately my body's matured a lot over the years and I've been able to do a lot more training this time of year than I normally would have.

"I'm just going to train as hard as I can, work on some deficiencies and go into the season with an open mind, a bit fresher and looking forward to having a better season."