Fremantle have been described as disgraceful, horrendous and embarrassing after another shocking performance away from home and a 61-point loss to St Kilda at Marvel Stadium.
The Dockers have made plenty of promises to each other this season after failing to perform against both Geelong and Melbourne but those words counted for nothing against the Saints as they lost 14.10 (94) to 5.3 (33).
Fremantle produced their equal 10th lowest score ever and were belted all over the ground.
The Saints destroyed them in the midfield, winning the clearances 50-22 and contested possessions 151-103.
They refused to let the Dockers get the ball forward, restricting them to 34 inside 50s while having 61 of their own.
Brownlow medallist Gerard Healy said the Dockers had been “embarrassing” and “horrendous.”
“It’s a disgraceful performance and they’ve been humbled.” Healy said on SEN’s commentary.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen Fremantle play a worse game than this. It’s unbelievable.”
Star pair Andrew Brayshaw and Caleb Serong couldn’t get their hands on the ball and Hayden Young suffered a hamstring injury during the first half. Brayshaw had 18 disposals and Serong managed just 15 – his lowest tally since his debut season.
The Dockers lacked the intensity that received wide acclaim against Adelaide last week and the backline was under constant pressure from a St Kilda line-up that had been under pressure all week.
Fresh from being subbed out in the second term last week, Saints coach Ross Lyon teamed Hugo Garcia up with his captain Jack Steele to lock down on both Brayshaw and Serong.
Brayshaw had only four touches and no clearances in the first term while Serong managed just two possessions.
Only a strong marking performance from Fremantle’s key defenders stopped the Saints from opening up a big quarter time lead.
The Saints managed only two goals from their 16 inside 50s. It could have been a lot worse but the Dockers trailed by just eight points at the first change.
St Kilda dominated the second quarter and it was clear the Dockers weren’t concentrating.
Sam Switkowski failed to attack a ball in the middle of the ground and the Saints surged forward for a goal to Mitch Owens just two minutes into the term.
Then they allowed Darcy Wilson to take a mark inside 50 and he nailed another major.
When Young got lost coming onto the ground and went to the centre square instead of forward 50, the Dockers received a 6-6-6 warning and it summed up how distracted Fremantle looked.
It took them nearly nine minutes to get the ball inside 50 and even that kick was marked uncontested by Cooper Sharman.
Moments later, Matt Johnson double fisted a spoil out of bounds when he could have taken the mark and then Shai Bolton didn’t spot Garcia behind him and kept running, costing himself a shot for goal.
The Dockers finally found some energy midway through the term but got no rewards because Michael Frederick missed the set shot.
When Young then injured his hamstring and was subbed out of the game, the signs looked ominous.
Fremantle failed to score a goal in the second term and went to half-time with just seven points on the board – their lowest tally under coach Justin Longmuir since COVID matches were played with reduced game time.
All of the numbers around the game were just as ugly. They trailed the clearances 28-11. The were 6-1 down in centre cleraances. It was 82-59 for contested possessions.
Serong had only seven touches. Bolton had five, Brayshaw had 10. They were miles off.
Corey Wagner had 12 of the team’s 52 tackles. There were too many players who simply weren’t contributing.
Yet somehow they were only 20 points down.
That lead opened up to 26 points when Sharman kicked the first goal of the third quarter. Fremantle’s drought finally ended nine minutes into the term when Isaiah Dudley kicked a goal but St Kilda quickly answered and Longmuir made the rare move to come down to the bench.
But he couldn’t fix the problems. Fremantle simply couldn’t score and St Kilda seized their chances at the other end.
When Sharman kicked his third goal for the third term with a freakish snap from the forward pocket, the Saints led by 38 points and the only question was how big the defeat would be.
Fremantle managed only five inside 50s for the third term. It was horrid.
The Dockers trailed by 45 points when Mitch Owens kicked the first goal of the last quarter. Surely it couldn’t continue.
Jye Amiss finally kicked a goal moments later but when Bolton got another opportunity, he sprayed the shot. Sharman didn’t waste his chance to boot his fourth though.
Fremantle started looking anywhere for a lift. At the next centre bounce, Josh Draper rucked with Luke Jackson, Murphy Reid and Matt Johnson as his midfielders.
That desperate move summed up the night and it kept getting worse.
