Cox will play his first AFL match since round four when he lines up for the Magpies in Saturday's clash with Fremantle at Marvel Stadium.

The 30-year-old is out of contract at season's end and his future looked bleak under Nathan Buckley.

Cox managed just 11 games last season and booted six goals in four games this year, before being axed and left in the wilderness.

Collingwood ranked 13th in attack in 2020 and are 16th this season, with an average of 70 points per game.

Only lowly Gold Coast (68.5 points) and last-placed North Melbourne (62.9) are worse.

But with Buckley gone and interim coach Robert Harvey expected to embrace a more attacking game plan, the stage is set for Cox to show he's worth another deal at Collingwood or at the very least an audition for an interested suitor.

It was just six games ago that Cox showcased his talents by tearing the heart out of West Coast with a breathtaking first-quarter display in the elimination final.

Cox reprised memories of his demolition job on Richmond in the 2018 preliminary final by booting three goals in as many minutes against the Eagles in Perth, setting the tone for the thrilling one-point win on enemy territory.

The stakes will be much smaller when the Magpies confront Fremantle on Saturday, but Cox will be aiming to impress when he forms a three-pronged attack alongside fellow bigs Brody Mihocek and Darcy Cameron.

"We've been hard to play against for a good chunk of time and we've been building on our offence as we go," Harvey said.

"It's obvious that we have to score more ... but I think it's been trending in the right direction up until now.

"We've sort of tweaked a few things and spoken about a couple of things that we might be able to get a bit of bang for buck out of, so hopefully that comes to the fore."

Collingwood will be without Jordan De Goey (suspended) and Darcy Moore (knee) against the Dockers, but the return of ruckman Brodie Grundy (neck) and vice-captain Taylor Adams (knee) is a big boost.

Fremantle skipper Nat Fyfe was named to return from a dislocated right shoulder, with a final call on his availability set to be made shortly before the match.

Spearhead Matt Taberner, defender Griffin Logue, forward Sam Switkowski and defender Nathan Wilson also come back into the side.

Collingwood (4-9) are on a two-game winning streak after following up their five-point win against Adelaide with a shock 17-point triumph over Melbourne in Buckley's last game in charge.

Australian Associated Press