Fremantle Dockers midfielder Michael Barlow says half the battle will be in the midfield as Freo attempt to quell the impact of the talented young forward line of the GWS Giants.

An established goal kicker in Jeremy Cameron, physically imposing Jonathon Patton and rising star Rory Lobb pose a threatening mix of size, marking ability and agility at ground level, but Barlow said it wouldn’t just be up to Freo’s defenders to handle the challenging task.

“We’ll try and take control of the ground battle and that will be the best way to help out the defence for us,” Barlow said.

“It’s such an important aspect of the game.

Midfield Walters

“To be able to get it going our way, gain ground position and put their defenders under pressure while giving our boys down back a bit of a rest.”

Despite not having Aaron Sandilands and Nat Fyfe due to injury, as well as going up against a formidable Adelaide midfield led by in-form ruckman Sam Jacobs, Freo won the clearance count 35 to 30 in their round six clash last Saturday.

Barlow said Freo’s recent improvement around the stoppages was a reason for optimism heading into Saturday’s night match with the ever-improving Giants team.

“Our stoppage numbers against Adelaide were better and we held our own for large parts of the game,” he said.

“We’ll have a good look at GWS and their ability around the stoppages, and we’ll also take a bit of belief out of the Adelaide game with our work around the ball.”