St Kilda has brought five players into its 25-man squad to face West Coast at Domain Stadium on Sunday, with Sam Fisher ruled out of the trip to Western Australia due to soreness.

Saints Coach Alan Richardson has brought Dylan Roberton (knee) and Jack Sinclair (calf) back into the preliminary squad after overcoming injury, and rewarded Brodie Murdoch, Eli Templeton and Lewis Pierce for strong form in the VFL.

Midfielder-forward Darren Minchington is the only other confirmed out at this stage, with the Saints omitting the 22-year-old from the travelling party.

All five inclusions have been named on an extended bench with the final team confirmed on Friday afternoon before departing early Saturday morning for Sunday’s twilight clash against last year’s grand finalists.

If selected, ruckman Pierce will make his debut, three and a half years after being drafted by the Saints. The 21-year-old has taken significant steps forward with his development in the early part of this season, producing a standout fortnight with Sandringham, splitting his time in the ruck and deep forward. 

With West Coast possessing one of the premier ruckmen in the game in Nic Naitanui and using Scott Lycett as a second option, Richardson may choose to deputise Pierce in Perth to provide Tom Hickey with some support against West Coast. Naitanui’s dominance in the ruck has led the Eagles to be ranked No. 1 for hitouts differential (+19.9) and hitouts to advantage differential (+6.7).

Both Murdoch and Templeton have been named in the senior squad on the back of strong form at Sandringham. Playing across half-back, Murdoch has been one of Paul Hudson’s best ball users in the VFL and keeps knocking on the door for another opportunity at senior level.

Templeton was best on ground last weekend, collecting 36 possessions and 15 marks against Collingwood to continue his strong start to 2016. The Tasmanian has played two senior this season in Round 1 against Port Adelaide and Round 4 against Hawthorn.

With Fisher missing this weekend, St Kilda’s defence will be tested against the Eagles potent forward setup. Josh Kennedy (20.17) and Jack Darling (16.4) have hit the scoreboard across the opening seven rounds, and with Fisher usually going to Kennedy, Sean Dempster may be handed the role against last year’s Coleman medallist.