Fremantle have confirmed its extended squad of 24 to take on Melbourne in the Pride Round clash on Sunday 12 October, headlined by the return of defender Sarah Verrier and a potential return of key forward Áine Tighe.

Verrier has been named in the backline after being a late withdrawal from last week’s game against Hawthorn in Melbourne due to illness, and replaces Gabby O’Sullivan, who has soreness in her left foot.

Tighe has been named on the extended bench alongside Amy Mulholland, Holly Ifould, Dana East, Tilly Banfield, Laura Pugh, Tunisha Kikoak, and a potential debutant in Evie Parker.

If Tighe is named in the final team tomorrow, it would mark the Irishwoman's first AFLW game since Round 4 against Melbourne last year, sidelined since then with an ACL injury. 

Senior Coach Lisa Webb spoke to media on Thursday morning and teased of a few changes to the side for this week.

“Melbourne are a really good team, but we’re up for a challenge,” Webb said.

“We’ve reflected really strongly from our trip away and looked at some areas we need to improve.

“We need to put scoreboard pressure on, and we’ve got a few things this week that we’ll throw in that I’ll let you know about later today.”

Webb said that while the close losses were tough, she was adamant her side is fully focussed on what they can control and staying in the moment.

“It is frustrating, but the best thing for us is we can control that – how we can improve each week,” Webb said.

“We can control the work we do to improve our skills, the cohesion between the group, and we’ve got a great leadership group, who are driving really high standards so it’s something we can attain.

“That’s the best thing about this group - they’ll keep charging and they’ll really work on those things.

“We’re in games, which is really important. We’ve got momentum at times, which we can score (from) and we’re not (right now), so that’s in our control.”

The last time these two sides faced each other in Round 4 of the 2024 NAB AFLW Season, Fremantle had a remarkable fourth-quarter comeback to secure a thrilling six-point win 7.5 (47) to 6.5 (41), after coming back from 18-points down at three quarter time.

This Sunday in honour of Pride Round, Fremantle will wear their 2025 Pride Jumper, which honours the Club’s legacy while embracing a powerful show of unity and inclusion.

The core design of the jumper is made up of 120 hearts - each hand-drawn by Fremantle players and staff, making up a rainbow version of the classic white chevrons.

The game will be broadcast live on 7mate and Fox Sports, and streamed live on Kayo, Binge and 7plus from 2pm WST.

Fremantle’s final team will be announced at 2pm WST on Friday at fremantlefc.com.au.