Jamarra Ugle-Hagan's response to his racial slur has been "unbelievably admirable", with coach Luke Beveridge in no doubt about the Western Bulldog's mindset.
Ugle-Hagan had a day away from the club earlier this week after it emerged a fan had abused him during Saturday night's AFL loss to St Kilda.
But the No.1 draft pick will play on Thursday night in the vital clash against Brisbane at Marvel Stadium.
"Jamarra, he's a strong Indigenous man and he'll absolutely take it in his stride," Beveridge said.
"He'll feel he needs to represent and show the way and we're looking forward to having him as part of the team tomorrow night.
'He's fine - he's very appreciative of all the support ... there was never any indication he was going to let something like this get on top of him.
"(That) is unbelievably admirable. He's ready to go."
Beveridge said Ugle-Hagan took the day off because he does not like being the centre of attention.
"He was obviously down, as we all are, as we wrap our arms around him and support him," the coach added.
Beveridge spoke of the Bulldogs' Indigenous links and said the AFL's latest racism incident was incredibly disappointing.
"You'd imagine how I feel about it, my love for our First Nations people runs really deep," he said.
"We have a great representation across ... our football club, so we're extremely sensitive to negativity."
The AFL is investigating the incident and the Saints have said the culprit will not be welcome at their games.
