Hindsight is a beautiful thing, and in the world of football we as fans tend to get caught up in the events of days gone past.

Every footy fanatic has that one player that they long to see take the field, however long gone their days of handling a Sherrin may be.

Whether it be Daicos or Doull, Ricciuto or Richardson, fans can usually point to a single figure that captured their imagination during their formative years of watching AFL football.

Similar to our 'If your club could steal one player...' series, this trio of pieces will go through all 18 teams in the league, pointing at the weak spots in their best 22 and picking one of four past players to slot into their lineup and remedy their club's ailments.

We start off today with the first six teams of the competition based on alphabetical order.

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Fremantle 

Option 1: Luke McPharlin

With the Dockers being one of the AFL's most recent additions, the club's past players list isn't as extensive as many of the older sides in the league. However, Fremantle can point to key defender Luke McPharlin as one of the club's most consistent past figures.

McPharlin's Fremantle career spanned 14 seasons, with the Perth native starting off his stint at Subiaco Oval down forward, booting 34 goals in his best year in 2005.

Over time 'Woosh' established himself as one of the most solid defenders in the entire league - especially in the club's better years between 2012 and 2015 despite being marred by injury in the latter stages of his career.

McPharlin earned himself an All-Australian blazer in 2012 for his efforts during that campaign and has been remembered as one of the best defenders to play for the Dockers so far.

Option 2: Peter Bell

Delisted from the Dockers in 1995, ball-winning midfielder Peter Bell only cemented himself in Freo folklore after he was begged to return in 2000.

The South Korean-born star won two flags with North Melbourne before returning to Perth to ply his trade with his original club. Bell was one of the club's standout performers throughout the early 2000s when the Dockers were the whipping boys of the competition.

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Bell racked up three club best-and-fairest medals during his time at Fremantle, captaining the side from 2002 to 2006 and appearing on 161 occasions for the side.

At only 175cm and originally regarded by Dockers coach Gerard Neesham as "too slow", Bell proved his doubters wrong and ended up finishing his career in 2008 as one of the greatest Dockers ever to pull on the purple.

Option 3: Aaron Sandilands

Aaron Sandilands was an incredibly dominant ruckman on his day, and it wasn't hard to be with the help of his 211-centimetre tall frame.

Debuting in 2003, Sandilands was the first choice Fremantle ruckman for the vast majority of his 271-game career, topping the total hitout charts on several occasions throughout his career by virtue of his mammoth frame.

The big man won two Doig Medals in 2009 and 2015 and made the All-Australian team on an impressive four separate occasions. It's safe to say that there hasn't been a ruckman like him throughout the club's relatively short history, and the truth is there probably won't be for some time with Sandilands' physique being both rare and incredibly desirable for AFL ruckmen.

Option 4: Matthew Pavlich

There should be no arguments over who Fremantle's best forward to date is, with Matthew Pavlich leaving his heart and soul on Subiaco Oval every time he ran out for his side.

Spending the entirety of his 17-year AFL career with Freo, "Pav" was the main man for his side through thick and thin. Finishing with 700 goals in 353 games and an incredible six club best-and-fairests, it's hard to picture what the Dockers would have been like without him considering he finished eight times as the club's leading goalkicker.

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Pavlich dabbled in multiple roles across the ground, starting at fullback before moving to his native position down forward - such was his versatility that at times he was even deployed in midfield.

The Dockers stalwart made the All-Australian team on six occasions, appearing at fullback in his third season of AFL football. His star-studded career sadly never saw him acquire a premiership medal, however his love for his club endeared himself incredibly to the fans that he played for.

Verdict

It's really no contest here.

Matthew Pavlich has to be the one, with his versatility and goal output exactly what the Dockers need at the minute.

Although they have unearthed forward Josh Treacy and drafted key tall Jye Amiss, having "Pav" back in the lineup would be decisive for Justin Longmuir's side as they build towards getting back to September footy.

If he is needed further up the ground too for whatever reason, he is able to do just that as seen in the past with his defensive work being tried and tested on several occasions.

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