Senior coach Trent Cooper paid credit to Carlton for mitigating Fremantle’s strengths in Saturday’s preliminary final at Ikon Park.

The Blues ran out 36-point winners with Fremantle unable to match their opponent’s intensity in the contest.

“We came into the game thinking our pressure had been our strong point. Carlton were the 10th ranked team for tackles and our ground balls had been outstanding all year,” Cooper said.

“We had won that battle every time, so we thought they were our two strengths going into the game.

“In the end, the tackles were even, Carlton’s pressure was outstanding and the groundballs ended up being 50 to 79.

“They just convincingly beat us in that area. They got to the ball quicker, they were clean.

“The effort from our girls was there but we were outplayed from that source and their forwards are so dangerous if they’re getting enough supply.”

Fremantle qualified for the AFLW finals with the equal-most wins of any club and Cooper paid tribute to the players for their efforts.

“It’s so hard to pinpoint one thing but I think in the end, the girls have to take a lot of the credit,” Cooper said.

“They really wanted to improve this year. They came up with their trademark, which was all about improvement and everything we’ve thrown at them.

Whether it’s been our high performance work with Kate Starre, our tactical work, our skill development - they’ve really taken that on board and in the end, that’s why they’ve improved so much.”

Cooper also paid tribute to the Fremantle fans for their role in driving the team, especially at home.

“It was just such a good experience playing at Freo Oval and winning all our home games,” Cooper said.

“Hopefully, we can do the same again. The girls get a huge lift out of that so when we head back there next year, we’ll be getting that same support.”