FREMANTLE coach Ross Lyon says Nat Fyfe will face St Kilda at Etihad Stadium on Friday night if he gets final approval from a specialist surgeon on Thursday, after the midfielder trained fully on Wednesday morning. 

Fyfe flew to Melbourne with the rest of the Fremantle team on Wednesday afternoon and was joined by Hayden Ballantyne, Lachie Neale, Dylan Roberton and Jack Anthony in a squad of 25.

Lyon said the star 20-year-old, whose reconstructed left shoulder slipped out of its socket in Fremantle's win over the Brisbane Lions last Saturday, was determined to play.

"I think we're living in a fool's paradise if we think it's absolutely perfect ... but most players carry something in," Lyon said.  

"He came second in the B&F last year and almost could have won it with the same sort of issues.

"He's really confident, he's determined to play. He trained fully (on Wednesday), we just want final tick off and he'll play.

"If the surgeon rallies against what we're planning ... well then we'll reassess."

Ballantyne, who has served a two-match suspension for striking Geelong's Paul Chapman in round one, will replace Josh Mellington (hamstring) this week, while Neale and Roberton could play their first games for the season. 

"We're taking over 25 with a few things up in the air," Lyon said.

"Hayden's back and [with his] form he is an automatic inclusion. He's got some unique attributes.

"Sean Dempster normally goes to him - that's who I used to match him up on, but who knows what their match committee would do now. You'd think he'd get (Clint) Jones or Dempster."

Key midfielder David Mundy has trained strongly following his first match back from a serious ankle injury and Lyon said the 2010 club champion was likely to play a full game after being used as the substitute against the Lions. 

If Fyfe is cleared to face the Saints, Lyon will have close to a full-strength midfield at his disposal, with Michael Barlow also playing full minutes, but the coach said that wouldn't guarantee anything against the 2-1 Saints.

"There's plenty of teams with great paper teams that get beaten," he said. "At the end of the day you've got to bring it to life.

"We're an emerging list, a building list, and they're the hard-nosed pros. At some stage you've got to stand up and you've got to deliver against those sorts of sides and we're working to it.

"We thought we stood up against Geelong, but now we've got another really big challenge."

Lyon joked earlier this week that he might wear a "spray jacket" to Etihad Stadium on Friday night as St Kilda fans prepare to give the former coach a hostile reception.

However, on Wednesday he described his return to face the team he led to three Grand Finals (including the 2010 replay) as a "moot point" and said he was used to the abuse.      

"I'm going over as Fremantle coach to try and beat an elite Melbourne-based club. That's where it sits," he said. "Do I look worried?"

"I've certainly got a lot of friends there, particularly the players I worked really hard with to try to achieve a result.

"Ultimately it fell short, [but] they're doing wonderful things at the moment. They're clearly on form and their best players are available and are playing incredibly well.

"We go over full of confidence. It's great to be on the Friday night stage. The footy world's tuning in and we have to stand up."

Nathan Schmook covers Fremantle news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Nathan

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs