Anything and Everything Fremantle
Archive for August, 2010
Fremantle milestone man Michael Johnson
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in Milestones
Fremantle milestone man Michael Johnson said he was comfortable with having his 100th game spoiled for the sake of the big picture after an understrength Dockers side was belted by Hawthorn on Saturday.
Johnson kicked two of Fremantle’s five goals in the 116-point defeat and was one of the few Dockers who could hold his head high amid the carnage.
The utility said the team that went out against the Hawks was fully supportive of the club’s selection strategy and he was hoping he could enjoy a delayed milestone celebration with a win over Carlton on Friday night.
Coach defends resting of stars
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in Miscellaneous
Fremantle coach Mark Harvey last night strongly defended his right to field a deliberately depleted side against Hawthorn after the Dockers were thrashed by the second-biggest margin in club history.
Hawthorn’s 116-point win at Aurora Stadium confirmed the club’s return to the finals after missing last year’s top eight but came at a cost, with defender Grant Birchall injuring a hamstring and Luke Hodge finishing the match on the bench with a wrenched knee.
At the end of a long season of travel, with just six days’ break before facing Carlton in a final-round clash, with a home final resting on that match and having endured a significant string of recent injuries, Harvey said his club had been entitled to leave out seven key players.
Captain Matthew Pavlich, Adam McPhee, David Mundy, Roger Hayden, Stephen Hill, Anthony Morabito and Nathan Fyfe were all rested, while Paul Hasleby was replaced by Tim Ruffles after developing fluid on a knee on Friday.
We’re not in it to please others, says Harvey
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in Miscellaneous
Fremantle coach Mark Harvey has defended his selection strategy for the round 21 clash with Hawthorn at Aurora Stadium, despite his weakened outfit slumping to a 116-point loss.
“We’re not in it to please other clubs,” he said.
“We think what we did today was right for our team in the next two weeks.”
With 16 first-choice players missing through a mixture of injury and a desire to freshen up before a crunch match with Carlton next Friday night, Harvey was candid about his aims for the trip to Tasmania.
“Just to play another competitive game,” he said. “I thought we were outclassed, that would be fair to say. That can happen.”
Facing the prospect of the longest road trip in footy, Fremantle flew to Launceston without a host of big names including Matthew Pavlich and Aaron Sandilands and lost veteran on-baller Paul Hasleby before kick-off.
Fremantle suffers heavy defeat
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in Match Results
Hawthorn 5.4 12.8 18.11 24.11 (155)
Fremantle 0.2 1.5 1.7 5.9 (39)
GOALS
Hawthorn: Franklin 5, Roughead 4, Burgoyne 4, Rioli 3, Whitecross 2, Lewis 2, Ellis, Hodge, Gilham, Bateman
Fremantle: Johnson 2, Murphy 2, Roberton
BEST
Hawthorn: Burgoyne, Rioli, Gibson, Mitchell, Franklin, Roughead, Bateman
Fremantle: Broughton, Johnson, Duffield
INJURIES
Hawthorn: Birchall (hamstring), Hodge (TBC)
Fremantle: Ruffles (knee)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Kennedy, Ryan, Jeffrey
Official crowd: TBC at Aurora Stadium
Hasleby could coach at West Coast
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in Miscellaneous
Decorated Fremantle veteran Paul Hasleby could emerge a shock candidate to coach at arch rival West Coast next year in sweeping changes to Eagles football operations.
Hasleby, 29, is expected to consider retirement following next month’s finals series when he will be out of contract after 11 years with Fremantle.
The courageous midfielder is believed to want to play on next season, but will consider a coaching career if he has to retire.
He is not among a host of starting team Dockers controversially rested from Fremantle’s Round 21 clash against Hawthorn and could be among up to a dozen changes for next week’s crucial showdown with Carlton in Perth.
Dockers shoot themselves in foot
614 years
by DockerNow.com
in Miscellaneous
Fremantle’s refusal to take a full-strength side to Launceston this week is a blight on the competition and an indictment of a club which wouldn’t know what success was if it slapped it in the face.
No less than seven Dockers players have been left out of the match against Hawthorn, with coach Mark Harvey basically conceding a match which the Dockers needed to win to get some momentum back into a faltering season.
While resting one or two players a fortnight out from the finals is seen as good player management, resting seven is cutting off your nose to spite your face. It put all the pressure on the Dockers to beat Carlton next week or risk missing a home final.
Some Dockers fans will tell you that it’s the best way to ensure their team is ready to tackle the Blues in a crucial match off a six-day break. That’s loser talk. Win this week and then worry about next week, that’s what the best clubs do.
It’s not as if Fremantle are playing Collingwood or Geelong this week, they are playing a Hawthorn side which has won just one game in the past month and is currently six points behind them on the ladder. They are also a side which Fremantle could be very likely to play in the finals depending on what happens over the final few weeks.
Chris Mayne reprimanded
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in WAFL
Fremantle’s Chris Mayne is free to get critical match practice for Perth in the WAFL at the weekend after a victory at the WAFL appeals tribunal last night.
The tribunal took an hour to downgrade Mayne’s one-match suspension arising out of a WAFL reserves match last weekend to a reprimand.
The match had been Mayne’s first match practice since suffering an ankle injury against Adelaide in round 11. He will now be in a position to press his claims for a spot in the Dockers line-up to play Carlton in round 22.
Mayne was initially offered a two-match ban by the WAFL match review panel. The one-match penalty was imposed by the WAFL Tribunal on Tuesday.
Team for Tassie: seven changes
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in Team Selections
Fremantle has rested key players heading into the penultimate round of the AFL season against Hawthorn in Launceston on Saturday.
Stars Matthew Pavlich and David Mundy are among a total of seven omissions, along with experienced players Roger Hayden and Adam McPhee.
Youngsters Stephen Hill, Anthony Morabito and Nat Fyfe will also not make the trip to Tasmania.
Fremantle is already without Aaron Sandilands, Chris Tarrant and Hayden Ballantyne, although the trio are expected to be back in action soon.
Coming into the side is Steven Dodd, who will play his third game of the season, while Ryan Murphy and Clayton Hinkley will make their first appearances in 2010.
Rhys Palmer, Jay van Berlo, Clancee Pearce and Justin Bollenhagen are the other inclusions.
Fremantle general manager of football operations Chris Bond said team selection was challenging, but a mounting injury toll, a long flight and a six-day break leading into the club’s next match had led to a decision that erred on the side of caution.
Fremantle Vs. Hawthorn – Round 21 Teams
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in Team Selections
Hawthorn
B: Brent Guerra, Stephen Gilham, Thomas Murphy
HB: Ben Stratton, Josh Gibson, Grant Birchall
C: Xavier Ellis, Sam Mitchell, Jordan Lewis
HF: Shaun Burgoyne, Lance Franklin, Michael Osborne
F: Cyril Rioli, Jarryd Roughead, Campbell Brown
Foll: Brent Renouf, Luke Hodge, Brad Sewell
I/C: Chance Bateman, Carl Peterson, Wayde Skipper, Brendan Whitecross
Emg: Rick Ladson, Shane Savage, Liam Shiels
In: Rioli
Out: Rhan Hooper (soreness)
Fremantle
B: Dylan Roberton, Antoni Grover, Greg Broughton
HB: Justin Bollenhagen, Luke McPharlin, Jay van Berlo
C: Garrick Ibbotson, Paul Hasleby, Clancee Pearce
HF: Byron Schammer, Steven Dodd, Michael Walters
F: Ryan Murphy, Michael Johnson, Matthew de Boer
Foll: Kepler Bradley, Nick Suban, Paul Duffield
I/C: Clayton Hinkley, Rhys Palmer, Jesse Crichton, Zac Clarke
Emg: Des Headland, Ryan Crowley, Tim Ruffles
In: Dodd, Murphy, Palmer, Hinkley, van Berlo, Pearce, Bollenhagen
Out: Matthew Pavlich (soreness), Adam McPhee (soreness), Roger Hayden (soreness), David Mundy (soreness), Stephen Hill (soreness), Anthony Morabito (soreness), Nathan Fyfe (soreness)
WAFL watch: Dodd delivers
014 years
by DockerNow.com
in WAFL
With senior opportunities set to present over the final two rounds of the regular season, a number of Fremantle’s WAFL performers put their best foot forward in round 21 of the state competition.
Steven Dodd, who has played two AFL games this season, was the club’s WAFL player of the round, while Clayton Hinkley pushed for his first senior game this season after an encouraging run of form with Swan Districts.
Midfielder Rhys Palmer enjoyed a confidence-boosting game for East Fremantle, while versatile youngster Clancee Pearce was also a strong performer.
Ahead of this week’s fixtures, senior development coach Simon Lloyd shared his WAFL notes with fremantlefc.com.au.
