Jesse Hogan, Rory Lobb and Matthew Taberner will be licking their chops ahead of round one.

Their opponents, North Melbourne, may not have enough key defenders left by that stage to close any of them down.

The Kangaroos’ key defensive woes deepened on Tuesday when they learned 198cm defender Sam Durdin would miss 10 weeks with a finger injury.

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The 22-year-old suffered the wound when he attempted to cut open a packet of food with a knife. Setbacks don’t get much more bizarre.

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North was already missing talls Scott Thompson (suspension) and Majak Daw (injury), while Robbie Tarrant will be racing the clock to be declared fit after surgery to repair his AC joint.

The other options at Brad Scott’s disposal are:

- Ben McKay, a raw key defender with one game to his name;

- Nick Larkey, a young tall forward with limited experience in defence;

- Ed Vickers-Willis, an undersized third tall who is coming off a serious knee injury;

- Sam Wright and Luke MacDonald, who typically play across half-back.

Making matters worse - or better, depending on where you sit - the Kangaroos have lost eight of their last nine season openers.

That’s not to say the Optus Stadium fixture is anywhere near a sure thing, particularly given Fremantle’s own health concerns.

The club faces a challenge covering for the departed Lachie Neale, with three leading candidates - Connor Blakely (hamstring), Stephen Hill (quad) and Reece Conca (knee) - all sidelined with injury.

It will also take time for Hogan, Lobb and Taberner to jell with an inexperienced midfield group, itself a work in progress.

But if omens carry any weight, there’s a few early reasons for Fremantle fans to be optimistic.