Brisbane premiership ruckman Beau McDonald says Fremantle can play all three of their rucks in the same team

Dual Brisbane premiership ruckman Beau McDonald says Luke Jackon’s incredible versatility opens the door for Fremantle to potentially play all three of their star ruckmen in the one side. McDonald — who was the Dockers’ ruck coach from 2022 until the end of the 2024 pre-season — has also backed Collingwood premiership star Mason Cox to get the starting ruck gig over stalwart Sean Darcy in the Dockers’ season opener against Geelong at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday. Cox’s recruitment has heaped pressure on Darcy, who sustained a minor calf strain during match simulation in January which kept him out of both of Fremantle’s pre-season hit-outs against opposition. Meanwhile, Jackson has been training and playing as a midfielder as Fremantle try to cover the loss of dual Brownlow medallist and former skipper Nat Fyfe following his retirement. McDonald said the Melbourne premiership player’s ability to play three roles — including as a forward — opened the door for Darcy and Cox to partner in the ruck. “The main point behind that is Luke Jackson can play multiple roles,” he said. “I’m not sure about Darcy, it’s not like he goes forward and kicks lots of goals but Cox is a target. I think they could (play all three), rotate them through and get a bit more out of them. “The way he (Jackson) gets after the ball after he lands from a contest is as good as any. He’s learning midfield craft, when he goes forward he’s bringing that ground level pressure and as a forward when the opposition has the ball you don’t want to be too slow down there when the ball hits the ground.” Speaking to The West Australian earlier this month, coach Justin Longmuir indicated Darcy remained a the front of the cue to be the Dockers’ No.1 ruckman despite a string of impressive performances from Cox in the lead up to the season. However, McDonald said Cox’s consistent pre-season preparation had him ahead of Darcy should they go with only the two ruckmen. “I’d say Cox starts on ball in the ruck. From hearing about Darcy’s load and he’s working his way back, I don’t think he’s too far away but I don’t think he’s as advanced as Luke Jackson and Cox would be,” he said. Fremantle will fly to Melbourne on Thursday ahead of the clash against last year’s grand finalists, who beat them in last year’s season opener at the same ground by 78 points.