The wait is over for Mason Cox with Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir confirming the former Pie will make his Dockers debut against West Coast this weekend.

The 2023 premiership winner had been knocking the door down at Peel with a dominant performance across his first two games, and it was swung open after Sean Darcy suffered a concussion in the Gather Round win over Collingwood.

Longmuir confirmed the 35-year-old will make his Dockers debut on Friday after being named in the extended squad in what will be his first AFL game since Collingwood’s preliminary final loss against Brisbane last year.

“Mason has been in really good form. He’s been our best player at Peel over the season down in two games. He’s been really waiting for an opportunity. An opportunity has presented, and he’ll come in,” he said.

“He wasn’t necessarily out of form. That wasn’t why he was at WAFL. There wasn’t an opportunity for him. My message to him in the last three or four weeks was that if an opportunity comes up, you are in good form. He’s done that.”

Longmuir said while Cox can also excel as a forward, the club must consider what impact it would have on Josh Treacy, Pat Voss and Jye Amiss if he was also playing inside 50.

He expects Cox to have similar game time to Darcy, which was about 50 per cent of the match on the field.

Young hasn’t played since injuring his hamstring in round one. The Glendinning-Allan medallist has struggled with soft tissue injuries for over a year and there was speculation he could be moved out of the midfield.

But Longmuir said Young would return without any restrictions for his game time and he would still be a midfielder.

“He’s been playing midfield time and forward line time. He’ll continue that mix,” he said.

“In the end, it’s about where he feels most comfortable and where he has an impact for the team. He’ll continue to play the same role.

“He has too much impact for us in the midfield and also forward of the ball. We want him in there. He’s one of our best centre bounce players. We want him in a position where he can best impact the game.

“I feel like we’re on top of his injuries. I feel like he’s had a really good rehab stint. He’s put a lot of work into that. I feel like he’ll be alright.”

Frederick hasn’t played at all this season after injuring his ankle. But Longmuir said he had quickly earned his position in the team despite not playing in the WAFL.

“Freddy has trained really well. He had a really good pre-season before he got hurt. His last couple of weeks have been really strong on the track. I feel like his run is important to us,” he said.