Fremantle has defeated Gold Coast in a tight encounter in tough conditions at Metricon Stadium on Saturday.

The Suns incredibly came close to victory over the competition frontrunners, spending most of a pulsating final quarter trailing by less than a kick.

But they were unable drag themselves over the line as the Freo Dockers scraped home in a 7.4 (46) to 6.17 (53) result.

It came down to the final moments, as a low-scoring contest ended in a sudden flurry of goals.

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Nick Suban kicked what appeared to be the sealer with a minute to go from a free kick just metres out from goal, but the Suns kept coming and Tom Lynch provided an almost instant reply.

In the end the Suns ran out of time but would have won plenty of admirers after a strong four-quarter performance supported by an even spread of contributors.

Fremantle coach Ross Lyon heaped praise on a hugely-depleted young Suns outfit for their dogged determination in making life tough for the Dockers, who had the better of open play but failed to make it count.

"We walk away with some frustrations today but they would have been greater if the scare had come true and we'd lost," Lyon said.

"I think (the result) belies the general play dominance and entry dominance.

"We couldn't quite capitalise, it was a difficult day, they had numbers back.

"Rodney Eade is a very good coach and he's very good at trying to equal things up when his team's an underdog."

Predictions of a Freo bloodbath proved well off the mark, with the ladder leaders again a long way from their best - a week on from their first defeat of the season against Richmond.

But Lyon said he would not dwell on the performance.

"At the end of the day, we turn at the break 10-1, we get a week off (and will) come back pretty invigorated about the second half of the year," he said.

Where Gold Coast failed against Hawthorn and Sydney in the previous two rounds, the Suns were able to drag the game down to their level and stop Fremantle's damaging run-and-gun style.

Nat Fyfe amassed a game-high 31 possessions and booted two goals in two minutes just after half-time, and at that stage the Freo Dockers appeared poised to kick away.

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But led by acting captain Michael Rischitelli (17 touches) and boom rookie Adam Saad (20 touches), the Suns didn't let them.

It was an incredible effort from a side crippled by an unprecedented injury crisis that left them with just 23 players to pick from.

Gold Coast coach Rodney Eade tempted fate on Friday by saying the Suns needed to avoid a first-quarter injury since their substitute, the returning Nick Malceski, was still hampered by a knee problem and not able to run out a match.

The early diagnosis is that Stanley has strained his medial ligament and could be out for up to two months - but there is relief on the injury front with up to nine players set to be available after next week's bye.

FREMANTLE       1.3  3.7  5.11 6.17 (53)

GOALS
Gold Coast: Raines 2, Lemmens, Lynch, Miller, Rischitelli, Kolodjashnij
Fremantle: Fyfe 2, Suban, Hannath, Crozier, Neale

BEST
Gold Coast: Rischitelli, Saad, Raines, Kolodjashnij, Boston, Harbrow
Fremantle: Fyfe, Mundy, C.Pearce, Sandilands, Sutcliffe, McPharlin, Spurr

INJURIES
Gold Coast: Stanley (knee)
Fremantle: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Gold Coast: Nick Malceski replaced Danny Stanley in the first quarter
Fremantle: Nick Suban replaced Matthew Taberner in the third quarter

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Fisher, Rosebury, O'Gorman

Official crowd: 8911 at Metricon Stadium