Swans confirm Justin McInerney will return for preliminary final against Fremantle

Sydney winger Justin McInerney will make his long-awaited AFL return from injury in a massive boost for the Swans in their preliminary final against Fremantle.

But the Swans will only roll the dice on one fit-again star, with key forward Joel Amartey to remain on the sidelines for Friday’s match at the SCG.

Swans coach Dean Cox is also sweating on the fitness of veteran defender Harry Cunningham, who hurt his calf during training on Wednesday.

Both McInerney (hamstring) and Amartey (Achilles) haven’t played in the AFL or VFL in three months.

But key forward Hayden McLean’s impressive stint as Amartey’s cover has proven enough to convince Cox to keep him. McLean kicked three goals in the club’s qualifying-final upset over Brisbane, pulling his weight with fellow talls Charlie Curnow (five goals) and Logan McDonald (six).

McInerney’s return will be a welcome reprieve for the understrength Swans, with main ball-winners Isaac Heeney and Chad Warner among five players serving club-imposed bans.

Nick Blakey, James Jordon and Riley Bice are the other Swans who won’t play again this season.

“Justin will play and Joel won’t. That’s just the decision we had to make,” Cox said on Thursday.

“We need to acknowledge that the players that played in that forward line group, whether they be tall or small, played their role as well as we needed them to.

“The decision was, ‘do we have to turn that around and change it’ or ‘do we just go in with what worked?’, and that’s what we’re going to do.

“With Justin, he’s had a lot of work put in throughout this period of time. It’s a matter of now backing him in.”

Cox confirmed Cunningham was managing a calf issue, with Lewis Melican waiting in the wings.

Fringe defender Melican has only played 10 games so far, last playing in the club’s round-22 win over Port Adelaide.

Cox was already mulling the make-up of his defence after captain Callum Mills suffered a season-ending knee injury during the qualifying final against Brisbane.