The old and the new. Former Fremantle coach Ross Lyon (left) and his successor in the post, Justin Longmuir
Ross Lyon set the deadline himself. By the end of 2020, the final year of his bumper new contract extension, he would have “no excuse” not to have guided Fremantle to its first AFL premiership.
It was March 3, 2016, and Lyon’s stocks had never been higher. After leading St Kilda to two grand final seasons, he had presided over a period of unprecedented success (it’s a relative term) for the Dockers after being lured away from the Saints in a stunning move to replace Mark Harvey as coach.
Four straight finals series, a first-ever grand final appearance, a minor premiership, even six consecutive western derby wins; all were achievements celebrated by a loyal and starving supporter base that had never tasted the ultimate.
“Ross The Boss”, as the faithful knew him, stood before a packed room of more than 800 at Fremantle’s season launch to address the announcement of his contract extension.
“Particularly by the end of this tenure, I’ll have no excuse to not have achieved that (premiership) because we’re fully-resourced, fully-supported and I’ve certainly got a timeframe where I can make short-term and long-term decisions to get us where we want to be,” he said.
Lyon was convinced Fremantle would be a contender in 2016, adding: “I’m sure that we’ll be there when the whips are cracking.”
The wheels fell off within a few short months, and the port club’s premiership dream went down the drain. By the end of 2016, Fremantle was back in full rebuild mode after the worst year-on-year slide down the ladder in AFL history.
Lyon fell short of the ultimate success, failed to inspire enough confidence that he was the man to take Fremantle back towards the top, and was sacked a year out from the end of his contract, taking chief executive Steve Rosich down with him.
Fast forward to September 2020. Now, finally, there is a purple pulse again under Justin Longmuir. Fremantle won’t be part of the upcoming finals series, but even the saltiest of wharfies can afford to be cautiously optimistic about the future.
Longmuir has a fresh outlook and a strong system that has been the bedrock of a promising development season for his young team.
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A new wave of talent has bought into his vision and committed to the task. Top-five draft picks Andrew Brayshaw and Adam Cerra have come on in leaps and bounds, joined by likely Rising Star winner Caleb Serong. A No.7 draft pick Hayden Young showed great signs in the first five games from the season restart before he was sidelined by an ankle injury.
Aided by a strong team defensive system, the injury-hit backline has held up without injured first-choice talls Alex Pearce, Joel Hamling and Griffin Logue. Fremantle ranks fifth in the competition for fewest points conceded. Luke Ryan is in All-Australian form and Brennan Cox has had a breakout season after being thrown back to plug a hole.
Nat Fyfe and Michael Walters are genuine A-graders, and old warrior David Mundy looks like he could go on for one more season at a very good level.
Matt Taberner, a forward who has teased for a decade, has finally come good. Alongside Jesse Hogan and Rory Lobb, the Dockers have a tall trio to work with. Hogan’s four-goal haul against North Melbourne was something he can build on.
But who knows what will happen with the troubled former Melbourne star over summer. He is contracted for one more year, but rival clubs are reportedly sniffing around. The Dockers haven’t publicly guaranteed he’ll be there next season.
A fit and firing Hogan would be a huge bonus. He’ll be 26 in February, meaning his best years could be ahead. But his playing future and the machinations of the forward line that ranks 17th in 2020 is just one of the areas that needs addressing.
There is a long way to go and Longmuir is still putting his stamp on the club.
Last month, the Dockers let go of long-time strength and conditioning boss Jason Weber, as well as assistant coaches Michael Prior and Anthony Rock. The new structure they put around Longmuir under tighter football department restrictions will be crucial.
They desperately need Pearce, Hamling, Logue and Young back up and firing, and Hogan’s playing future sorted. Confirmation of a contract extension for Serong would be nice, too.
A strong pre-season program could be a launch pad into 2021, and a clean sheet when it comes to off-field incidents over summer would help.
Fremantle could end 2020 by dashing the Western Bulldogs’ dreams in Cairns on Sunday, but this is a club that should now again be daring to dream of something much bigger.
