Fremantle forward Sam Switkowski celebrated his 100-game milestone in style, praising the team's resilience - something the group has been working on for a long time.
Speaking after the nail-biting one-point win over Collingwood, Switkowski applauded the team for withstanding the Pies’ early fourth-quarter surge before kicking the final four goals of the game to secure victory.
“It was unbelievable. It was a special win,” Switkowski said.
“To do it against such a quality team like Collingwood at the MCG in front of a big crowd… I’m very proud of the boys.
“Collingwood’s probably the most damaging team with momentum. They can kick a few goals on you really quickly, so again, we prepared for that.
“We knew we had to keep our cool, see if we could slow the tempo of the game down a little bit, and then get it back on our terms.
“Then there were moments… the game’s not always going to look pretty, and sometimes you’ve just got to find a way to win - like we did tonight.”
Collingwood had the advantage in inside 50s on the night, winning the count 63 - 40. But as Switkowski alluded to, it was about making the most of key moments that mattered most, with Fremantle converting 47.5% of their inside 50s into scores, while restricting Collingwood to just a 36.5% score per entry.
Pleasingly, the team was able to limit some of Collingwood’s trademark transition game, holding the Magpies to just one goal from defensive-50 scoring chains.
“We’ve got a six-day break into West Coast. We always say with RAC Derbies, it doesn’t matter where teams are on the ladder - it’s always a hard-fought game,” Switkowski said.
“Even though it was an incredible effort today, it’s still just four points.
“It’s an incredibly tight run for the top eight this year, so every game is really important.”
Fremantle’s win over the Pies continues the Club’s July 20 win streak, adding a sixth victory to the tally dating back to 1997 - remaining undefeated on this day.
Fremantle now sits seventh on the AFL ladder at the end of Round 19.
