FREMANTLE coach Justin Longmuir has backed assistant Jaymie Graham to pursue a senior coaching job this season while continuing his key role with the Dockers, declaring the forwards coach had completed one of the best apprenticeships in the game.

Graham is among the assistant coaches being targeted by Carlton to apply for its senior vacancy and has long been viewed as a senior coach of the future, narrowly missing the Collingwood vacancy won by Craig McRae in 2021.

His coaching apprenticeship started in 2012 with St Kilda and has also included time with West Coast during its most recent premiership era, coaching his own team in the WAFL with East Perth, and then the past five years with Fremantle as one of Longmuir's key lieutenants.

His role with the Dockers' young tall forwards has been a key reason behind the team's 14-game winning run this season, and Longmuir said the former West Coast player had all the tools needed to be a senior coach.

"I think he's got a great resume and ticks a lot of boxes, and he's got my blessing to talk to whoever he needs to talk to. I think he can walk and chew at the same time," Longmuir said on Wednesday.

"He has great relationships with his players, he's a really strong educator, and I think he's got a well-rounded resume in terms of coaching his own team, but also coaching different lines at different footy clubs and seeking different cultures to work around and be involved in.

"There's probably not too many better resumes out there, I wouldn't have thought."

Graham was forwards coach at West Coast during their 2018 premiership season and later backline coach, standing in as senior coach for one game in 2018 when Adam Simpson was unavailable due to a family illness. 

The 43-year-old also took the reins at Fremantle for two games in 2022 when Longmuir was sidelined by health and safety protocols, boasting a perfect record from his three games in charge.

He chose not to pursue the West Coast vacancy won by Andrew McQualter at the end of 2024, underlining that he was keen to be a senior coach one day but was enjoying his time with Fremantle and not in a rush.

The Dockers take on Greater Western Sydney in Canberra on Saturday, playing at Corroboree Group Oval for the first time since a 20-point win against the Giants in 2022.

Young star Murphy Reid shapes as a key player after another outstanding performance against Gold Coast, with Longmuir aware that opposition clubs were starting to put more attention into the second-year jet.

"Teams are … and I think that allows [our midfield mix] to evolve and gives him and Caleb (Serong) and 'Bolts' (Shai Bolton) a bit of flexibility to change their roles up when they get attention," Longmuir said.

"I think the last couple of weeks, 'Bruce' has got a little bit more attention and he's been able to work through that, and his flexibility allows him to play different roles."

Longmuir said ruckman Sean Darcy had pulled up well from his AFL return and was "in a good space" physically after also playing three WAFL games following his return from a calf injury.

While the team has started a compacted 12-day block that includes three games, Longmuir said the team was well positioned to handle the challenge, with a six-day break this week and a five-day turnaround then looming before a Thursday night blockbuster against Sydney at Optus Stadium.

"Players these days handle six-day breaks really well, so all we're concerned about is GWS at the moment," the coach said.

"We've had decent breaks between our last couple of games. We only do one main training session on a six-day break, but it'll still be a solid session."