Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir is set to use key defender Brennan Cox in the forward 50 on Sunday when the Dockers host Brisbane at Optus Stadium.
Cox was cleared to face the Lions at selection this week after getting through the club's two main sessions in the lead-up to their season opener, with the key defender having dealt with a stress reaction in his leg over the pre-season.
Having been deemed fit to play this weekend, it's been revealed that Cox won't line-up in his traditional defensive role and will instead occupy a target role in Longmuir's front half.
That move would mean he joins young spearhead Jye Amiss as well as ruck options Luke Jackson and Josh Treacy against the Lions in a forward line that will contrast last year's Round 1 ensemble that consisted of Matt Taberner, Lachie Schultz and Liam Henry.
Cox has previously played as an attacking option for the Dockers, having done so under Ross Lyon in 2018 to boot 18 goals from 16 games.
"He'll play forward," Longmuir confirmed toย Triple Mย Perth on Saturday.
"We need an extra tall forward. We'll go with Luke Jackson in the ruck. We like having two talls down there at all times, it'll look like three talls on paper but once [the ruck-forwards] start rotating you end up with two talls for 20 minutes in the quarter. It'd leave Jye one out.
"So getting a contest on the ball and getting it to ground level at worst in our front half is really important.
"[Cox] has done a super job to get himself up to this point. It looked unlikely he'd be fit enough to play, but he's just gone about his rehab really well. We couldn't not pick him."
A switch back to the front third could also cause some headaches for Brisbane's backline, with the grand finalists deciding to go without tall backman Jack Payne for their second game of the season.
The Lions will have co-captain Harris Andrews on their last line, while veteran Darcy Gardiner is also likely to play in defence after spending last week as a forward piece for Chris Fagan.
Ryan Lester is likely to take on the Dockers' third tall target and gain some assistance from Noah Answerth, who has been named as an inclusion for the Lions from their Opening Round side.
The Lions were forced into withdrawing dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale (hamstring soreness) and dashing defender Keidean Coleman (ACL) for Sunday's clash, while the Dockers won't have ruckman Sean Darcy (knee) and backman Heath Chapman (hamstring) for the first few weeks of the new season.
Fremantle were also forced into a late change to their initial squad, with midfielder Jaeger O'Meara ruled out due to soreness.
The Dockers and Lions will clash at Optus Stadium on Sunday at 3:50pm local time.
