DANIEL Bradshaw's quick recovery, Steve Johnson's return from a nagging hip injury and Nick Stevens' move out of the dog house are the biggest selection stories ahead of round 18.

Stevens' inclusion is just one of a raft of changes at Carlton with Andrew Walker also making his much-awaited comeback to senior football along with Michael Jamison, Setanta O'hAilpin, Mitch Robinson and Dennis Armfield.

Walker, 23, has been dogged by shoulder injuries throughout his career and suffered a major setback in the pre-season when a bump during a Bullants' practice match resulted in another dislocation.

However, surgery and a strong recovery have allowed Walker to put in two strong VFL performances in the past fortnight, earning him a senior berth against the Roos on Friday night.

Chris Johnson (hamstring) is out through injury, but Greg Bentley, Brad Fisher, Shaun Grigg, Adam Hartlett and Chris Yarran have all paid the price for last week's heavy loss to Collingwood.

Grigg is an emergency with Richard Hadley and Cameron Cloke.

David Hale was the big-name omission at North Melbourne as caretaker coach Darren Crocker made two changes at Arden Street.

In what will be Adam Simpson’s final match for the Kangaroos, Hale and youngster Ben Ross have both been left out of the side that will take on the Blues.

Defenders Nathan Grima and the experienced Daniel Pratt both come in for North, which will be trying to win its first game since round nine and also send off Simpson in style.

Lindsay Gilbee leads the inclusions for the Western Bulldogs for Saturday's encounter with Fremantle at Docklands.

Gilbee was a late withdrawal from the side defeated by the Saints while developing players Andrejs Everitt and Brennan Stack also earn recalls after long absences from the seniors.

The trio replaces Scott Welsh (ankle), Shaun Higgins (hamstring) and Robert Murphy (hamstring) with Wayde Skipper, Guy O'Keefe and Easton Wood the emergencies.

Fremantle loses Brett Peake (ankle) and Tim Ruffles (knee) from the side that prevailed over the Eagles while back-up ruckman Zac Clarke has been omitted.

Des Headland, Chris Mayne and Michael Walters will all make the trip to Melbourne while Clarke is an emergency with Adam Campbell and Marcus Drum.

Geelong has regained two All-Australians for Saturday’s clash with Adelaide at Skilled Stadium.

Skipper Tom Harley (knee) and Johnson, the Cats’ most dangerous forward, both return to the line-up.

Harley has missed a fortnight while Johnson has been sidelined for a month.

The captain's inclusion will off-set woes for key defenders Matthew Scarlett and Harry Taylor, who will both miss after sustaining groin injuries in last week’s gutsy win over Hawthorn.

Adelaide has selected veteran Tyson Edwards with the midfielder recovering from a hamstring strain that has kept him sidelined for a fortnight.

He returns in place of the desperately unlucky Brodie Martin, who is set to undergo a knee reconstruction. It's the only change Neil Craig has opted to make as his side tries to upset the second-placed Cats and edge closer to a coveted top-four spot.

The Crows have named Andy Otten, who suffered a corked thigh in last week’s Showdown win over Port Adelaide, while young guns Taylor Walker, Jared Petrenko and Tony Armstrong are all on standby for the clash with Geelong.

The Sydney Swans are calling on all their experience as they try to bring down unbeaten St Kilda on Saturday night.

Facing a huge task at the SCG, the Swans have picked veteran Jared Crouch for the clash. Kristin Thornton is the unlucky omission from the side that beat Melbourne last week.

St Kilda has named big man Justin Koschitzke despite doubts earlier in the week regarding an injured hand.

However, coach Ross Lyon has suffered a blow with important defender Sam Gilbert set to miss with a sore back. Matt Maguire could be edging closer to a senior recall and is an emergency for the clash.

Collingwood has named an unchanged line-up for Saturday night’s match against the Brisbane Lions at the MCG.

The Magpies, coming off a nine-goal win over Carlton, have elevated rookie Jarryd Blair, Tyson Goldsack and midfielder Sharrod Wellingham as emergencies.

The Brisbane Lions have sprung a surprise by including Bradshaw in their side.

Earlier this week Bradshaw was still listed as a week away from resuming after he strained his hamstring against Fremantle in round 16.

Draftee Tom Rockliff will make his AFL debut in one of four changes to the side that easily beat North Melbourne last week. Troy Selwood and James Hawksley also return.

Tim Notting (suspension), Tom Collier (knee), Pearce Hanley (hamstring) and Albert Proud (foot) are out of the clash.

Melbourne forward Liam Jurrah will miss Sunday's game against the Tigers with an ankle injury, as will Jordie Mackenzie (calf) who debuted last week in the loss to the Swans.

Jack Grimes and James Frawley are straight back into the starting 18 while Colin Sylvia, Jake Spencer and Neville Jetta have been included on an extended bench.

Richmond's inclusions – Alex Rance, Shane Tuck, Kel Moore and Mark Coughlan – all appear on the seven-man bench while Jarrod Silvester (knee) is the only exclusion from the side that upset the Bombers.

Port Adelaide has reacted to a Showdown thumping by dropping Brett Ebert and Steven Salopek for Sunday's clash with the Hawks.

Dean Brogan is back to lead the ruck division and is joined in the starting 18 by Matt Thomas while Hamish Hartlett, Nick Salter and Tom Logan come onto the extended bench.

Hawthorn has added Cameron Stokes, Brendan Whitecross and Travis Tuck to a seven-man bench.

West Coast will make at least two changes for Sunday’s clash against a depleted Essendon.

The Eagles have plucked 21-year-old Callum Wilson to make his debut. The South Fremantle rookie has been named at full-forward and is one of five inclusions in a 25-man squad.

Ryan Davis, Eric Mackenzie, Ben McKinley and premiership player Tyson Stenglein are also in the mix.

It is a sorry tale for Essendon, with several stars nursing injuries following last week’s disappointing loss to Richmond.

Matthew Lloyd (heel), Mark McVeigh (leg), Alwyn Davey (knee) and Jason Winderlich (back) have all failed to come up for the trip to Subiaco.

Sam Lonergan, Heath Hocking, Hayden Skipworth and forward Jay Neagle look set to be given a chance in the wake of those injuries, while Bachar Houli, Leroy Jetta, Michael Quinn have also earned call-ups.