Justin Longmuir, Fremantle president Dale Alcock and general manager of football Peter Bell all addressed the media on Monday to discuss the appointment of Longmuir as Fremantle’s new senior coach.

Here are the key takeaways from the media conference.

Longmuir wants Freo to be a contested ball team
Longmuir – “I strongly believe that the game starts at the contest. I want Fremantle to be a really strong contested ball team.”

A balance between offence and defence
Longmuir – “Under my apprenticeship as a coach, I looked after both areas (offence and defence). One of my philosophies as a coach is that the two complement each other. They’re not mutually exclusive so we’ll be talking a lot about how our offence complements our defence and vice versa.”

Longmuir has benefited from a decade-long apprenticeship to become a senior coach
Bell - “From afar, just watching his development and how much he wanted to continue to improve to get this opportunity, it was something that I think the whole football world noticed. He’s (shown) the initiative to go to Melbourne to go to a great club like the Collingwood Football Club to improve his coaching abilities and (he spent) a long time at West Coast as well as Fremantle.”

Phil Walsh and Neale Daniher have influenced Longmuir as a coach
Longmuir - “They showed enormous faith in me. To have that support as a young coach and that confidence from two very senior figures in the game was a great shot in the arm for me as a young coach.
There are so many people that you learn from in footy and outside footy and I’ve tried to connect and mould myself on as many of those influences as I can. 

An important pre-season ahead
Longmuir - “I would imagine we will take a bit of time to get used to new processes, new training habits, new style of play. I would expect our players to pick that up over the pre-season. I want our coaches to be really strong educators so that we can make that happen as quickly as we can.” 

Longmuir wants to repay the faith from when he was drafted in 1998
Longmuir – “Fremantle gave me an opportunity as a player 21 years ago. They put a lot of faith in a skinny kid from the country and drafted me. I don’t feel like I fulfilled that faith that they showed. To get another opportunity to fulfil that faith is really exciting and it’s something that I’m absolutely looking forward to.” 

A career cut short due to injury helps Longmuir relate to his players
Longmuir – “(Retiring at 26) has added to the way I go about my coaching. It’s helped me have empathy for what players are going through, especially in the rehab situation, which can be really draining mentally and physically. It’s one of many experiences I would say that has developed me to be the coach and person that I am now.” 

Longmuir was a standout candidate from a strong pool
Alcock – “Given the high quality of the final candidates, we were very particular to ensure that we made a very considered decision. Justin stood out for us as someone who has been preparing for this role over the past 10 years. He knows what is required to win and what’s required for sustained success.
Justin not only has a great knowledge of the game but most importantly as a person, he is someone who is absolutely genuine and driven to get our players to be the best that they can be.”

Development will always be a priority
Longmuir – “We will always be looking as a football club under me, to evolve and develop, whether that’s the list, the style of play, our skill development – we’ll always be looking to evolve as a footy team.”

There will be no ‘hand holding’ under Longmuir
Longmuir – “I want our players to be self-motivated so that they can get the best out of their abilities. A lot comes with self-motivation but I want our coaches to guide our players, not hold their hands, and I want them to be motivated to not only be the best themselves but help their teammates achieve the things they want to achieve out of their careers.”

Longmuir sees a list with stars and potential
Longmuir – “We’ve got (Nat Fyfe) on our list who just won his second Brownlow. I think the core of our midfield is there and the other thing that excites me about the list is at both ends. I think we’ve got some really good key position players. Obviously, we need to see them out there a little bit more and to get games into them, but I think our tall stocks are really good.

The fans give Fremantle their identity
Longmuir – “If you ask me what the Fremantle Football Club stands for, it’s the passion of the fans. That passion used to drive me as a player, it used to drive us as a team 15 years ago and it still drives our players today. I don’t think there’s a more passionate fanbase in the competition. My message to them is that we’re all in this together, we need their support and I’m really excited about evolving our brand of footy and giving them something to cheer for.”