CARLTON coach Brett Ratten has swung the axe at the selection table with Nick Stevens and Heath Scotland the high-profile casualties from the side thrashed by 69 points last week.

The savage reaction to the loss to Essendon headlined Thursday night's teams for round 14, with Jordan Bannister and Steven Browne also dropped for Sunday's clash with Fremantle at Subiaco.

Paul Bower will miss through injury.

Brendan Fevola, along with Stevens, came in for plenty of criticism following the disappointing Friday night capitulation, but the full-forward has escaped the axe this week.

Bret Thornton, Jordan Russell and Jeff Garlett go straight into the starting 18 while Chris Yarran, Joe Anderson, Greg Bentley, Cameron Cloke and Chris Johnson must wait for Friday's final selection after being named on an expanded bench.

Fremantle has recalled Clayton Hinkley and added Adam Campbell, Ryan Murphy and Kepler Bradley to a seven-man bench.

Captain Matthew Pavlich (calf) is a huge loss while Dean Solomon has been dropped for disciplinary reasons.

David Mundy will play his 100th AFL game since joining the club via the 2003 national draft.

Collingwood looks to have gained an early advantage – at least at the selection table – ahead of its blockbuster clash with Essendon and has recalled Leon Davis and Scott Pendlebury.

Both midfielders have been named for Friday night’s match, tipped for a near-capacity crowd at the MCG.

Davis has recovered from a cold which forced his late withdrawal last week while Pendlebury appears to have made a speedy recovery from the knee injury he sustained less than two weeks ago.

He trained on Thursday and is now likely to take on the Bombers. Shannon Cox and Chris Dawes – both on the emergency list – are the omissions.

Essendon’s midfield will be weaker for the absence of Jobe Watson, who despite reports earlier on Thursday he might play, has not been named.

The good news for coach Matthew Knights is he was able to recall the versatile Adam McPhee, who missed last week with a calf strain.

Impressive youngsters Bachar Houli, David Myers and Michael Hurley are all on the standby list.

Melbourne youngster Jack Watts is among four changes as the Demons try to win for club chairman Jim Stynes.

Watts, who has struggled to make an impact in three matches and whose form has been subject to much scrutiny, is out through illness. Teammates Paul Johnson, Matthew Whelan and Brad Miller have fallen victim at the selection table as coach Dean Bailey looks for a winning formula against West Coast at the MCG on Saturday.

Melbourne will regain some key players, however, with James McDonald, Matthew Bate and Mark Jamar all returning, while long-kicking midfielder Paul Wheatley will play his first game for the season after battling injury and form.

West Coast will be without its two best players for the game against Melbourne, with Daniel Kerr joining Dean Cox on the sidelines.

Kerr (soreness) and Tom Swift are the two omissions, with Brett Jones and veteran Chad Fletcher coming into the side.

Port Adelaide has recalled classy ball-user Steven Salopek for Saturday’s home clash with the Brisbane Lions.

Salopek and defender Paul Stewart are the two changes for the Power which desperately needs to win if they are to remain in the hunt for the finals.

Defender Michael Pettigrew has been dropped after missing just two games in the past three years, while Nick Lower has also been omitted.

Michael Voss will give out-of-favour midfielder Travis Johnstone another go as the Brisbane Lions continue their push for the top four.

Johnstone has been in and out of the side in recent weeks but hasn’t played since round 11. He has won his place back at the expense of tall defender Jason Roe.

Richmond will host the Crows on the Gold Coast on Saturday night with Jayden Post set to debut for the club.

The 194cm key position prospect was selected 26th overall at the 2008 NAB AFL Draft and comes into the side with Andrew Collins. Alex Rance and Jarrad Oakley-Nicholls have been omitted.

Adelaide has handed Shaun McKernan his AFL debut after a series of strong performances in the SANFL.

The 18-year-old younger brother of North Melbourne champion Corey was drafted at No. 28 overall last year and has been named at centre half-forward.

Fellow tall James Sellar has also earned another opportunity after playing just one game last year – his AFL debut – with the pair replacing Brad Moran (knee) and Taylor Walker (omitted).

Brent Reilly, Phil Davis and Tony Armstrong are the emergencies.

The Western Bulldogs have lost Daniel Giansiracusa to a six-week knee injury and have gone for youth by replacing him with Sam Reid, who will play his second career game.

Dylan Addison, Brennan Stack and Tim Callan are the emergencies for the match against Hawks.

Hawthorn has regained key backman Stephen Gilham and also recalled Liam Shiels, Josh Kennedy and Beau Dowler.

Mark Williams is out with a knee injury while Beau Muston, Brendan Whitecross and Ryan Schoenmakers have been omitted. Travis Tuck and Clinton Young join Schoenmakers on the emergency list.

The Sydney Swans have named Craig Bolton for Sunday's match against the Kangaroos after the important defender passed a fitness test on his knee.

Jarrad McVeigh is also back after missing a week with a shoulder injury while Nick Malceski, Mike Pyke and Luke Ablett have been added to an extended bench.

Barry Hall will, of course, miss the next two weeks after striking Crow Ben Rutten while Kristin Thornton has been dropped.

North Melbourne has added Sam Power, Lindsay Thomas, Josh Smith and Todd Goldstein to a seven-man bench ahead of the clash at the SCG. Ben Warren will be sidelined for a lengthy period after breaking his leg in last week's loss to the Dogs.

St Kilda will be without its oldest player when it meets Geelong in one of the biggest home and away matches in history.

Veteran defender Max Hudghton (ankle) has been ruled out of Sunday’s clash at Docklands, while the Saints will also consider blooding a debutant in the pressure-cooker environment.

Mature-age rookie Luke Miles, a speedy half back originally from Swan Districts in WA, is in a 25-man squad and could be called on to help Ross Lyon counter the Cats’ array of small forwards.

Raph Clarke, Robert Eddy and James Gwilt also come into the squad for top-of-the-ladder St Kilda, which will try to make it 14 straight when it takes on Mark Thompson’s team.

Geelong has also lost a defender from its round 13 line-up, with David Johnson set to miss at least three weeks with a calf strain.

The Cats are unlikely to make many changes when they finalise their team on Friday night but have brought a bevy of ready-made replacements into the squad. David Wojcinski, Mathew Stokes, Ryan Gamble and youngster Simon Hogan are all on the extended bench.