But the surprise recall of Brandon Walker ended in tears, with the injury-plagued backman unlikely to play any further part in the Dockers' AFL flag campaign as they fell to a 32-point qualifying final loss to Hawthorn on Thursday night.
Playing just his fourth senior game in two years, the 23-year-old limped off the ground with assistance from a trainer after rolling his ankle late in the third quarter.
He appeared to be in tears on the bench as the fourth term started after being ruled out for the rest of the game.
The backman had been on the outer since Fremantle's season-opening loss to Geelong, but was a surprise inclusion at the expense of Judd McVee for the Optus Stadium home final.
And he was handed one of the toughest assignments in the game: shutting down superstar Hawks forward Nick Watson.
Walker held his own for much of the contest and had some strong moments offensively, including a blistering run through the middle of the ground that earned a standing ovation from the Dockers' faithful.
But by three-quarter time, Watson had two goals and the Hawks were 33 points ahead.
Walker has struggled to stay on the park throughout the past two seasons, and Dockers coach Justin Longmuir indicated that run was likely to continue.
"Clearly, some ankles you can jab and get him back out there, and this wasn't one of them, so that tells me it's serious," Longmuir said.
"Really unfortunate because I thought he was holding his end of the bargain up ... it's been a bit of the story of his last two years."
McVee had held his backline spot for much of the season, but Longmuir maintained recalling Walker was the right selection call.
"I think he showed he was up to the challenge," the coach said.
"There are some things he could have done a little bit better, but largely I thought he had a lot of good moments."
Watson looms as a game-breaker for the Hawks as they prepare for a home preliminary final.
In just his third season, the diminutive "Wizard'' has stamped himself as arguably the league's premier small forward, booting 55 goals to earn a maiden All-Australian selection.
Capable as he is of delivering show-stopping moments, Watson's ferocious pressure and ability to instil uncertainty in the minds of defenders could be his greatest strength.
And his influence without the ball was evident as the Dockers fumbled the ball in their backline, looking far from assured in the heat of the finals furnace.
Watson's impact grew after halftime, bursting through traffic with a brilliant gather and almost curling home a stunning banana kick, before adding his second major moments after Walker went down with injury.
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