WEST Coast coach Adam Simpson is ready to unleash Nic Naitanui to go "full bore" at Sydney this Sunday, provided the star ruckman gets through Thursday's closed training session unscathed.
Naitanui's much-anticipated comeback in the Optus Stadium blockbuster will mark 581 days since he ruptured his ACL against Hawthorn in round 22, 2016.
It has been a long road back for the Eagles' most important player, but Simpson said Naitanui is ready to return.
"I want to see him get through training again and tick-off one more session and if he gets through that he'll play," Simpson said.
"We've been really conservative in how we've brought him back – his training program, his minutes, his jumping, all those sort of things to get us to this point.
"Now we just let him go. He's ready.
"I think we need to be a bit patient about what he's going to deliver but the fact he's in the side we all walk a bit taller.
"But it's not all about Nic."
The Eagles are likely to have to manage Naitanui's game-time for the first "four or five" rounds given his long lay-off and the fact he only has about an hour of football under his belt in a WAFL practice match.
But Simpson will also have Scott Lycett, set to play his first game since round 16 last year, to rotate through the ruck and in attack.
"(Naitanui) traditionally hasn't played every minute of the game," Simpson said.
"But when he's on the ground he'll go full bore.
"We like to think our rucks can play forward, so I don't think anyone will play two genuine rucks anymore.
"If we have a resting ruckman forward … he's got to have a focus on pressure and scoreboard impact as well."
Simpson wouldn't reveal which of the "three or four" debutants will face the Swans, but onballer Daniel Venables, mobile forward Jake Waterman and former Subiaco star Liam Ryan appear almost certain to be picked.
However, small forward Willie Rioli won't play after an injury-interrupted pre-season and six-game defender Tom Cole isn't available after his father's funeral in Victoria.
Simpson expected a finals-like atmosphere with nearly 60,000 fans packed into Optus Stadium for the first AFL match at the world-class venue.
About 1000 tickets were still available on Wednesday night but the crowd will easily exceed the 1979 WAFL Grand Final record of 52,781 for a football match in the Western Australia.
"I'm not sure what the atmosphere is going to bring, but we can't wait to see what it is," Simpson said.
"It's going to be a pretty daunting environment, not just for the young players, but the old players as well, but it's something we're really looking forward to.
"We're really looking forward to the season. It's a new era for the club."
