Fremantle midfielder David Mundy will spend up to eight weeks on the AFL sidelines despite being cleared of a broken leg.

And goalsneak Hayden Ballantyne is expected to miss two weeks after straining his hamstring in Sunday's 34-point win over Essendon.

It was initially feared Mundy had fractured his fibula, which could have ruled him out for the rest of the year.

But scans showed no crack to the bone, although the 2010 best and fairest winner would have to wear a protective moon boot for up to three weeks due to a significant high-ankle sprain.

Mundy and Ballantyne join Adam McPhee, Aaron Sandilands, Nick Suban and Anthony Morabito as key players on the sidelines.

"I don't know what the old adage is, black cats and walking under ladders, but it has been unfortunate (with all the injuries we've suffered)," defender Paul Duffield said ahead of Sunday's clash with Melbourne at the MCG.

Mundy's absence could be offset by the return of fellow midfielder Michael Barlow, who is on track to resume his career against the Demons after making it through two hitouts in the WAFL.

Barlow, who suffered a broken leg last year, tallied 33 possessions on Saturday for Peel Thunder.

Duffield said fans shouldn't expect Barlow to take up all of the slack left by Mundy, given his limited match practice.

"I think people understand that he's been through a fairly significant injury in the scheme of things, and we've seen players not come back to be the players they were previous to that," Duffield said.

"He's done a mountain of work. He's been super professional in the way he's handled everything and that's shown in the fact that he played so well in his second game back on the weekend after 12 months out.

"I don't think there should be any spectator pressure on Micky.

"He'll be clear on what his role is and he'll go out and do that to the best of his ability.

"I guess (Mundy's) our number one ball-winning midfielder, so it's probably a responsibility that'll come to myself and a couple of others to see if we can at least influence that area of the game and try and match the opposition in that area.

"Certainly, we had a range of players go through the midfield because of that on the weekend and I thought a lot of our guys contributed really well."

Defenders Roger Hayden and Alex Silvagni are also closing in on AFL returns after successful comebacks in the WAFL.

The seventh-placed Dockers (6-5) had lost their past nine encounters at the MCG, but Duffield said the venue held no fear for the player group.

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