Brandon Starcevich will play his first AFL game for the West Coast Eagles in the WA Freeze match against Port Adelaide at Optus Stadium on Saturday night.

After being recruited from Brisbane last October, the two-time premiership defender is ready to run out in blue and gold in the round 13 clash.

Starcevich has played the past two matches in the WAFL, building his game minutes after overcoming calf trouble.

“Super excited making my debut for the Eagles this weekend. It’s been a long time coming,” Starcevich said.

“It was a tough start to my life as an Eagle so to finally get out there this weekend will be an achievement for myself.

“I’m not a very good watcher from the sidelines – I get a bit jealous – so the last couple of months have been pretty tough.”

An East Perth product, Starcevich returned to WA after playing 132 games for Brisbane and was added to the Eagles’ leadership group in January.

The 26-year-old will become the eighth Eagle to debut in blue and gold this season, following ex-Lions teammate Deven Robertson, Tylar Young, Milan Murdock, Willem Duursma, Cooper Duff-Tytler, Josh Lindsay and Harry Schoenberg.

“The boys have been asking for the last couple of weeks when I’m going to be playing,” Starcevich said.

“I got the news today in front of the boys and it was a pretty cool moment.

“They’ve all been really supportive over the last couple of months and I’m keen to get out there and play alongside a lot of them.”

West Coast hosts the Power in the annual WA Freeze clash for Fight MND at 6.15pm on Saturday night, raising funds for vital research and support for Australians living with Motor Neurone Disease.

Volunteers will be positioned around Optus Stadium selling Fight MND beanies and collecting donations before the match, while digital beanies can be purchased here.