Yarran, 25, arrived back in Melbourne from Western Australia on Thursday. The former Carlton backman had been in Perth to deal with a family issue. He is yet to play for Richmond after signing a three-year deal with the club in October after being traded from the Blues, with a foot injury delaying his debut in yellow and black.

Speaking at Melbourne Airport before the Tigers crossed the Nullarbor for Saturday night's clash against Fremantle, Hardwick appeared confident that Yarran would eventually take the field for his new club, despite the playmaker being on indefinite leave.

"Chris has obviously had some family issues that he's working through at the moment. He'll continue to work through those. He's had a rough patch," Hardwick said.

"We're just here to support him and give him whatever support he needs. He's going to be a quality player for us for a long period of time. We just wish him the best and hope he can get back on the park for us at some stage."

Asked whether there was any doubt about Yarran's future at Punt Road, Hardwick responded strongly. "No, not at this stage. Absolutely not. He's a player that we've invested in and from our point of view we're looking forward to what he can present on the field.

"[But] that's probably not going to be in the short term."

Hardwick said he was proud of the way the Tigers have handled Yarran's situation, as well as that of youngster Reece McKenzie, who is also on leave from the club – dealing with a mental health issue. "Players come with issues all the time. The best place to be, in my opinion, is within a footy club. We've got fantastic people that provide really good resources in that area and we attack problems head on. As a football club we're really proud of our efforts and support that we've given both those players."

The Tigers were bringing 25 players to Perth for their date with the winless Dockers with all three emergencies – Jacob Townsend, Oleg Markov and Nathan Broad – venturing to WA. Hardwick said the final composition of his side was yet to be determined, with Richmond leaving their options open given the forecast 10 to 20 millimetres of rain in Perth on Saturday. "We've still got a few selections decisions to be made going into this game, that'll be made probably on the way over."

Richmond (2-6) have regained captain Trent Cotchin and midfielder Kane Lambert, both of whom had missed two matches through injury. Cotchin will wear a helmet against Fremantle to provide extra certainty following his cheekbone fracture three weeks ago against Port Adelaide. Corey Ellis is out with soreness, while promising youngster Daniel Rioli is away dealing with a family matter in the Northern Territory. Hardwick said he wasn't sure when Rioli would return. "We'll just let those issues deal with themselves and when he puts his hands up we'll pick him to play."

After an engrossing battle against Lance Franklin last weekend, star defender Alex Rance has been earmarked for the "first crack" at veteran Fremantle forward Matthew Pavlich.

Despite their breakthrough win over Sydney last week, Hardwick said he was not feeling any more "breathing space". "It's a high-pressure job. We know what we're in for as a footy club. It's a performance industry. I don't want to say we enjoy it, but it's part and parcel of what we do. Expectations are high at our football club."

Hardwick added that the Dockers were better than their 0-8 start suggested. "They're probably similar to us. Their record probably doesn't quite reflect where they are as a football side."