Five players are sitting in the queue waiting for an opportunity as the West Coast Eagles examine the right balance for the challenge of Monday night football against Melbourne at Optus Stadium.

Coming into the squad are ruckman forward Nathan Vardy and defenders Jackson Nelson and Alex Witherden. Those three players have all been rewarded for exceptional form with the WAFL Eagles.

Veteran midfielder Mark Hutchings also remains in the mix after not being required when named as the medical sub last week. And young midfielder Luke Edwards has been cleared to resume after a hamstring injury.

The club has decided to take a conservative approach with captain Luke Shuey (calf) and key defender Tom Barrass (hamstring), giving them at least another week before resumption.

At this stage the Eagles match committee has pinned its faith in a response from the playing group as they search to bounce back from a disappointing loss to Collingwood last week.

As they chase an important victory over the Dees, the selectors have left just one player out of the team that lost to the Pies at the MCG – although that could change.

Developing midfielder Xavier O’Neill has been omitted, but there are players lining up for an opportunity as the match committee will continue they examine the mix over the next couple of days. The final team will be revealed on Saturday afternoon.

Vardy, Edwards, Hutchings, Jake Waterman, Witherden, Nelson, Josh Rotham and Connor West have all been named on an extended interchange bench.