INS – Salem, McDonald
OUTS – Sparrow (susp.), Petty (inj.), Jordon (Round 9 sub, omitted)

IN WHAT is set to be an historic Friday night clash between Narrm and Yartapuulti, the Demons will welcome back Christian Salem and Tom McDonald to their starting 22.

It’s exciting news for Salem, with the defender having been sidelined for much of 2023, pushing through a thyroid concern at the beginning of the year, before his return to play was delayed further with a knee injury.  

The 27-year-old has proved his fitness this week on the track and will look to bolster the red and blue backline as they prepare to take on the in-form Yartapuulti.

McDonald re-joins the side following a number of notable performances in the VFL, with the forward set to add further height and experience to Narrm’s attack.

Tom Sparrow will miss the match after accepting the AFL Match Review Officer’s one-match sanction.

It was also confirmed on Monday that Harrison Petty would miss the next four to six weeks after sustaining a foot injury during Round 9.

James Jordon will join Bailey Laurie, Taj Woewodin and Joel Smith on the Demons’ emergency list.

The Friday night clash will make history as the first game to be played between clubs who have rebranded to their traditional language names, being Narrm (Melbourne) and Yartapuulti (Port Adelaide).

Yartapuulti announced last week that it would take on its Indigenous name for the two weeks of Sir Doug Nicholls Round.

The rebranding comes from the Kaurna language, ‘Yarta’ meaning place or land and ‘Puulti’ meaning sleep or death, which is the name the Kaurna people gave the land around the Port River.

The Demons are heading into their second year as Narrm Football Club, Narrm coming from the Woi Wurrung word for Melbourne, the city and its surrounds.

The significant match between Narrm and Yartapuulti will open Sir Doug Nicholls Round, with a special Welcome to Country scheduled ahead of the first bounce at 7:50pm (AEST).

Check out the full Round 10 team below.