Fremantle's slow start against the Swans in the first half ultimately proved too much for the team to overcome late, despite a swing in momentum and clearance work in the second half.
Senior Coach Justin Longmuir and defender Heath Chapman both spoke post-match following the 11-point loss, stating that while Freo were able to win the clearances by five in the second half their ability to setup behind the ball in the first half made it difficult for the team to play the game on their terms.
“Stoppage was clearly an issue, centre bounce was an issue in the first half, clearance was an issue in the first half, and in general I thought our ball handling wasn’t at the right level,” Longmuir said.
“I think we had six first possessions in clearance in the first half, along with cough-ups and not dealing with the pressure they brought.
“We tidied it up after half time, and in the last quarter we started really well in that sense and gave ourselves a chance, which I’m proud of - but in the end, they had a little bit too much class and finish for us.”
Chapman echoed his Senior Coach’s comments in his post-match Club interview.
“The discussion was that we don’t think we jumped into the game how we would have liked,” Chapman said.
“We didn’t protect the corridor how we would have liked, and our team defence wasn’t up to it.
“We got it looking a bit more how we wanted in the second half, but we were just playing catch-up and couldn’t get it done in the end.”
At half time Fremantle trailed in multiple key categories, including tackles inside 50 (3–13), clearances (12–26), inside 50s (23–29), and contested possessions (61–70). But by full-time, had taken the lead in inside 50s (51–48), contested possessions (127–123), and had won the clearance differential by +5 in the second half.
Longmuir noted that while some players were slightly off at the start, they worked their way into the game and made an impact.
“Your involvement isn’t always going to be there with kicks, marks and handballs, but we’ve got to make sure we are really consistent with our structures and intent,” Longmuir said.
“We had the same team out there in the first half as we did in the second half - and we won the clearances in the second half.”
After having just three disposals in the first half, Shai Bolton was one of those players who came to life in his 150th career game, proving instrumental in the third quarter with 10 disposals.
“He’s one guy that did give us a bit of life around centre bounce and clearance,” Longmuir said.
“That’s why I don’t think we are necessarily reliant on Caleb and Andy - because we’ve got him, Matthew Johnson, Neil Erasmus, and Corey Wagner, who had a look through there (the midfield) and had their moments.”
Fremantle will now return to Perth to face fifth-placed Hawthorn in Round 18 at Optus Stadium on Saturday night for the Kids Go Free round.
“Quick turnaround with a six-day break. We’ll recover, hit main training hard, and look to improve,” Chapman said.
