Fremantle’s ruckmen have proven to be more than a handful this year, and Simon Eastaugh will become the man responsible for making sure that trend continues in future AFL seasons.

Eastaugh, who played 17 games for Essendon and 12 for Fremantle during his four-year AFL career, will link up with the Dockers on November 1 as their new ruck coach.

The 40-year-old had a similar role at the Dockers between 2003-05, before going on to coach WAFL club Perth for two years.

Eastaugh also had a stint as ruck coach at the Eagles, who boast two of the league’s best ruckmen in the form of Nic Naitanui and Dean Cox.

Fremantle also feature a powerful ruck duo in the form of Aaron Sandilands and Zac Clarke, while Jon Griffin, Jack Hannath, Craig Moller and Kepler Bradley are other ruck options on the list.

The Dockers will reach this year’s grand final if they can beat Sydney in Saturday night’s preliminary final in Perth.