The reigning Club Champion, a 2018 premiership teammate and two exciting youngsters have been included in the West Coast Eagles team to tackle Sydney at the SCG on Saturday.

Key defender Tom Barrass, who won last year’s John Worsfold Medal, and rebounding half-back Liam Duggan, who played alongside him in the 2018 triumph, resume after brief injury interruptions as the club plots to win back the HMAs Sydney II Memorial Trophy.

Barrass missed two games with a hip flexor injury, while an infected leg and one-week suspension conspired to keep Duggan out of the team that played Adelaide a fortnight ago.

Also coming into the line-up are developing tall forward Jack Williams and first-year midfielder Elijah Hewett, the club’s second selection in last year’s national draft.

Williams would likely have played sooner after a strong pre-season, but was an unfortunate victim of a training mishap in the weeks leading into the season when a seemingly innocuous tackle saw him damage his spleen.

He made his solitary senior appearance in the match against North Melbourne last year, best remembered as a game when the Eagles needed to call on COVID top-up players to field a team. Williams has impressed in the last month at WAFL level.

Hewett was forced out of the round 12 match against Collingwood after a heavy collision with Pies star Jordan DeGoey, the timing of which was also unfortunate. Hewett had made a bright start to the game with his energy and power evident early in the contest.

He missed the Adelaide game under concussion protocols but has trained strongly in the last week and has earned an immediate recall.

Star defender Jeremy McGovern, who pressed for a return to action for this game, did not come up and the club also received additional injuries against the Crows with Greg Clark (foot) and Luke Foley (hamstring) both unavailable.

Campbell Chesser, Zane Trew and Xavier O’Neill have all been omitted but have been named as emergencies with young ruckman Harry Barnett. One of that quartet will play as the tactical substitute.