Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir says he won't throw everything "upside down" just because his team's finals hopes are officially over.
The Dockers' slim chances of sneaking into the top eight were extinguished on Sunday when they suffered a three-point loss to Brisbane in Perth.
It means last year's semi-finalists find themselves in 15th spot with an 8-12 record heading into Saturday night's western derby against West Coast.
With just three games remaining, Longmuir is adamant his players will continue to give it their all.
And although the fourth-year coach may make minor changes to his side as well as tactical tweaks, he won't be unleashing major changes.
"The last thing you want to do is turn everything upside down and change too much, because you lose a little bit of continuity and connection if you do that," Longmuir said.
"So we just keep looking for opportunities to try different things without upsetting the balance.
"We had some players who played really well at (WAFL side) Peel (on Saturday), so we'll just keep rewarding guys on form and keep throwing a little bit at them."
Fremantle finish their year with games against West Coast, Port Adelaide and Hawthorn.
Longmuir is confident his players won't lack motivation, despite finals being out of the equation.
"Every individual, every person at the club has got something to get out of these last three games. So our mindset shouldn't change," Longmuir said.
"Every game of AFL is important, and we'll treat it like it's the most important game.
"This week - expect every player to prepare like it's their most important game, just like they did for today, just like they did for Geelong.
"I'd be really disappointed if the players thought there's nothing to play for and lacked motivation or purpose."
The experiment of using defender Hayden Young in the midfield continues to bear fruit.
A week after successfully tagging Geelong star Patrick Dangerfield, Young helped curtail the influence of Brisbane midfield gun Lachie Neale early in Sunday's match.
Young tallied 10 disposals in the first quarter while keeping Neale to just four possessions and no clearances.
Although Neale finished the match with 25 disposals and eight clearances, a lot of them came once the tag was relaxed somewhat.
Young finished the match with 29 disposals, 10 tackles and six clearances.
"I think he's got that balance between locking away his man and working off him and getting the ball," Longmuir said.
"I think he adds something different to our midfield mix in terms of his body size and left-footer. I think he's shown enough that it's worth persisting with."
Defender Ethan Hughes will undergo scans after injuring his left ankle against the Lions.
