Will Schofield: Fremantle’s long-term planning and 2022 rise underlines all that is wrong at West Coast

But I’m not sure there’s ever been a bigger gap in output by WA sides to start the season. Seven rounds into 2022, a changing of the guard is underway. Fremantle, sitting at third on the ladder with a huge percentage, are close to the hottest team in the AFL right now. They look every bit a serious challenger to Melbourne.

In contrast, West Coast are close to the worst team in the competition. They’re sitting on three losses in a row where the side has looked, at best, uncompetitive. Any benefit of the doubt given players have been unavailable is almost gone. It’s a bleak outlook for the team, once far removed from the team that won a premiership in 2018.

So why are these teams at opposite ends of the AFL ladder?

List profile and player depth

Fremantle have built their list through the draft and learned from their errors in the past.

The Dockers’ success this season has been on the back of a core list of young, high-end talent. From the weekend alone, 13 players have been added to the club via the draft in the past five years – Nathan O’Driscoll, Brandon Walker, Josh Treacy, Caleb Serong, Michael Frederick, Lachie Schultz, Andrew Brayshaw, Lloyd Meek, Sam Switkowski, Bailey Banfield, Griffin Logue, Brennan Cox and Luke Ryan.

The likes of Jordan Clarke and Will Brodie, Blake Acres and James Aish have been picked up via trades in the past three seasons as well, while Hayden Young, Heath Chapman and Sean Darcy are also likely to return as well after missing Saturday’s stirring win over Geelong.

Fremantle have built this list the right way.

Adding players in the trade period to fill gaps in their list, required positions, specifically Brodie and Clarke. Adding speed and inside ball-winning ability that was missing, especially with the departure of Adam Cerra to Carlton.

It’s been a long build since Fremantle’s last finals appearance in 2015, with some list mistakes along the way. I’m sure the club would do things differently when trading for Jesse Hogan, Cam McCarthy and Harley Bennell, but you live and you learn, and they’ve opted to go to the draft over trading players.

The list strategy has been different at West Coast. Since 2015, the Eagles have continued to chase the cup. A grand final in 2015, premiership in 2018 and renewed efforts to do so again in the years since. You can’t blame them for that.

But conversely, a lack of high draft picks in that time has meant development and blooding of young players has been sparse.

If the Eagles won another premiership over that period, would the scrutiny be the same as it is now? Probably. West Coast ultimately haven’t delivered a dynasty. They’ve had a one-hit wonder and are now suffering the consequences.

A competitive future looks a long way away for the Eagles, with only two players under 21 in the side that lost to Richmond on the weekend. They are inexperienced but not young. Injuries mean they don’t have depth, but realistically the talent stocks aren’t the same as the Dockers down the road.

Some are calling it bad list management, and Tim Kelly’s name gets thrown around a lot as an example. Would the Eagles trade two first round and two second round draft picks for Kelly if they had their time over, knowing what they know now?

But that’s not how the game works and the Eagles must deal with the cards they’ve dealt themselves.

Game style

Fremantle’s trump card at the moment is the incessant pressure they apply to their opposition. That’s a great thing, because it’s something you can control as a group.

They have high pressure forwards, whose role is to chase, tackle and harass first, and kick goals second. This is where the opposition pressure starts for the Dockers. Then Fremantle’s glut of accountable midfielders win contested balls, making it easier for the Dockers’ backline to defend.

Second only to Melbourne for points conceded, Fremantle’s backline is one of the best in the competition. They play for each other, work to help one another and can win or halve contests better than anyone.

West Coast though apply little to no pressure in their forward half. Their forwards and midfielders look sluggish over the ground compared to opposition teams. From my experience, that doesn’t necessarily mean they are unfit.

The ability to run and move with intensity is as much mental as it is physical. Currently, West Coast can’t mentally put themselves in a position to compete physically and the difference in running output is there for everyone to see.

Curiously, on the back of all of this, West Coast is persisting with a pressing defence, which is near impossible to do with no pressure up the ground. Good teams press to defend and West Coast aren’t a good side right now. This means defenders pressing to loose men in front of them only leaves them looking silly when the opposition break through for easy goals out the back.

Mindset and connection

I’ve played in a premiership-winning team in 2018 and a wooden spoon team in 2010, so I’ve seen it all.

Playing in a winning team like Fremantle is more enjoyable, but isn’t easy. Expectation is starting to build for the Dockers and managing that is their next challenge. They flew under the radar a little to start the season, but beating Geelong in Geelong puts the competition on notice. Beating Fremantle now becomes a feather in team caps, and few will take the Dockers lightly from here on.

But if Fremantle can weather that oncoming storm, enjoyment and levels of connection between players will grow as well. Competition for spots keeps a healthy edge inside the club, while winning only breeds a greater connection between those in the starting 22 each week.

Playing in losing sides, especially one being beaten as badly as West Coast is right now, is tough. It’s hard to keep driving standards within the group, hard to maintain belief in each other and the coaching staff. Rifts start to appear and only the strong survive in a team entering a transition period.

The biggest challenge in underperforming teams though is to get out of your own head and help other people. It’s far easier to focus on yourself and your own form, rather than helping develop younger players and continuing to teach – even when it’s not working on the field. The danger is you just worry about getting a kick and don’t bring any one along for the ride. This fixes nothing.

As a result of where they find themselves, West Coast will have to work harder than Fremantle this year, even though their season will likely end a month earlier than the Dockers.

How can West Coast turn things around?

I’ve been part of a full rebuild within five years of a premiership. After winning the 2006 flag, West Coast collected the wooden spoon just four years later. By the 2011 season we were playing in a preliminary final. In my experience, fortunes won’t turn quickly for the Eagles without full buy-in from the players.

It takes some strong leadership from within to stay the course, even in the face of huge public criticism.

John Worsfold’s faith in his players never wavered throughout that 2010 wooden spoon. He gave games to those who may not have deserved it at the time (yes, that includes me). In the end, we were better for it, and better at handling pressure on the other side.

Crucially, West Coast also boasted elite young talent on their list at the time. The likes of Josh Kennedy, Shannon Hurn, Luke Shuey, Scott Selwood, Brad Ebert, Eric Mackenzie, Nic Naitanui, Chris Masten, Jack Darling and Andrew Gaff, to name a few, signalled a new era for the club.

But does the current Eagles list have the crop of youngsters to bond together and form something special like the group above?

How do Fremantle keep the good times going?

Successful sides are not held together only by talent. They require role players, elite feedback systems, competition for spots and strong leadership – both from senior players above as well as emerging leaders below.

When things start to go well and the group starts to really believe, that’s when you need to focus on finding the balance between keeping a lid on things and enjoying your wins.

A common football motto is ‘focus on what you can control’ and it rings true for the Fremantle Dockers. After a strong start, they have the advantage of now focusing on their own systems and structures each week. Prepare for the opposition, but know that your best footy will likely beat most you come up against, so that should be the focus. To be your best.

Play your role on game day, do the little things, don’t try and be a hero.

Successful teams just do what they are meant to do. Nothing more, nothing less. Even contribution across the group is what delivered Fremantle to where they are now, don’t go away from what you do well just because of a few pats on the back.

That is Fremantle’s challenge over the next six weeks. Come through that period with few losses and top four, or even top two, is on the table and anything can happen from there.