ALAS SPRINGS by Whispering Jack

I got the word on Saturday from someone who knows someone inside the Fremantle camp that the Dockers were pumped and supremely confident about getting the W the next day against Melbourne at TIO Traeger Park in the red heart of the country.

I was informed that the Dockers were extremely confident for a number of reasons.

They had beaten the Demons on their home territory at the MCG at their last two meetings so they didn’t see beating them at Alice Springs as a problem.

They believed they had figured out the strengths and weaknesses of their opponents well. In particular, they felt that their two ruckmen had the competition’s overworked but leading exponent of the craft covered, that their midfield was more versatile and could beat the combination that swept all before them when the premiership was played off for the first and only time in their neck of the woods. Moreover, the Freo one wood was a defence they backed to hold anyone to a meagre score and that their attack was lean, hungry and primed to score heavily.

My mail came from a reliable source but at the time, I dismissed it as fanciful and over optimistic on the part of a club that had, after all, struggled through 2023 to finish in 14th place, managed only four goals at home against the Swans a few weeks ago, had just fallen in against the Saints and managed to grab a last gasp draw against a wounded and faltering Magpie team, again on home turf. This was not the sort of form that was sufficient to warrant such boastfulness.

And seven minutes into the game at Alice Springs with the scoreboard showing Melbourne leading by 2.1.13 to 0.0.0, I was feeling pretty confident that the Dockers were on the wrong track and that the Demons were about to secure their place in the top four. But …

alas …

they were right and I was wrong. 

From that time, Melbourne managed only one more goal to half time and by the time the game was over, a number of records had been smashed to pieces.

It was a complete demolition with the 92 point defeat, the club’s biggest under coach Simon Goodwin. Fremantle's 22.9.141 was the highest score it has conceded since he took over as coach in 2017.  By the time, it was over, his team was outside the top eight for the first time since the 2021 premiership season began and when the round ended, they were tenth on the ladder.

What happened?

The Dockers’ pre-match predictions were all spot on - that’s what happened!

Apart from that opening seven minute period, the pressure they applied was far too much for Demons who were beaten all over the ground allowing the marking power of Luke Jackson, Josh Treacy and Jye Amiss to overpower the much vaunted Melbourne defence without Jake Lever as the glue that holds them together.

At the other end of the ground, there was not a pulse to be found in its attack.

For a coach, the post match conference is the most difficult task on earth after a flogging. Goodwin described the performance as "completely unacceptable" but …

alas …

if he was directing his comments to the playing group, he was wasting his time. They had completely switched off much earlier in the day

MELBOURNE 2.3.15 3.3.21 5.4.34 7.7.49

FREMANTLE 5.2.32 11.5.71 18.7.115 22.9.141

GOALS

MELBOURNE McDonald 2 Gawn Oliver Petracca Petty Viney

FREMANTLE Amiss 4 Jackson Treacy Walters 3 Frederick 2 Clark Darcy Fyfe Serong Sturt Switkowski Young

BEST

MELBOURNE Petracca Salem Gawn McVee Viney Neal-Bullen

FREMANTLE Clark Serong Brayshaw Amiss Young Walters

INJURIES

MELBOURNE Hunter (left calf)

FREMANTLE Nil

REPORTS

MELBOURNE Nil

FREMANTLE Nil

SUBSTITUTIONS

MELBOURNE Taj Woewodin (replaced Lachie Hunter at half-time)

FREMANTLE Corey Wagner (replaced Michael Frederick at three-quarter time)

UMPIRES Johanson O'Gorman Williamson Mollison

CROWD 6,109 at TIO Traeger Park