Injured small forward Michael Walters expects to be up and running soon as he recovers from a knee injury sustained in last Sunday’s Western Derby at Optus Stadium.

Walters injured a ligament that supports his kneecap and he could be able to return to football in the next fortnight.

“I knew at the time that it wasn’t a PCL because I’ve been through that a couple of times,” Walters said.

“I thought it might have been the medial (ligament) but the scans came back with a good result and it was only the kneecap, so it’s all good. 

“Once the swelling goes down, and the swelling’s almost gone now, I’ll focus on running and movement and movement on the ground.”

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Walters said it was tough to watch from the sidelines after coming off in the second quarter of a crucial clash with Freo’s local rivals.

Despite an eight-point loss, Walters was proud of the team’s effort.

“Those are the sort of games that you want to play in, being the first Derby at Optus Stadium with the crowd buzzing,” Walters said.

“There’s no doubt both teams were buzzing too, so to come out early…it’s a bad time to injure yourself. 

“The team played well, especially being one player down. I thought we stuck to our structures and the young boys stood up.”

A similar effort will be required of Fremantle when facing ladder leaders and reigning premiers Richmond at the MCG this Sunday.

The Fremantle leadership group member has the belief that his teammates can cause an upset, just as they did in the equivalent fixture in 2017.

The key, according to Walters, will be Freo’s midfield stars matching it with Richmond’s.

“Dustin Martin and Trent Cotchin, they’re the real drivers in Richmond’s midfield,” Walters said.

“We’ve got some real key drivers ourselves in Lachie Neale, Nat Fyfe and David Mundy, so we’ll need those boys to stand up as they’re the guys in the engine room who can match them. 

“It’s going to be won and lost in the midfield. Last year, the game was a close one and Dave kicked (the winning goal) after the siren.

“In that game, it was the key drivers in the midfield, whoever won the contested ball battle came away with the win.”