Mark Duffield: Matt Taberner’s moment ends Fremantle’s momentum in western derby loss
Mark DuffieldThe West Australian
Sunday, 19 July 2020 7:08PM
Mark Duffield
Here it is in a nutshell: It’s early last quarter and Fremantle summoned what was left of their energy and raised one last mighty effort.
Rory Lobb took a big pack mark and kicked a goal. West Coast’s five-goal lead became four. Then Lobb took another one.
Just as good, even closer to goal. He missed. Still they came. They pressed forward again. First gamer Michael Frederick dared to take the ball back into the corridor and go long, Matt Taberner clunked it, went back and missed everything.
Then the Eagles took the ball to the other end, 250-gamer Josh Kennedy got the ball in his hands after a holding free, and didn’t miss.
Thirty points clear again, game over, the Eagles own the derby record of 10 wins in a row.
It was fitting that Kennedy did it. It was his fourth goal and clinched the Glendinning-Allan Medal for him.
We had thought going into the game that the tall forwards would prove to be the hill that an undersized Fremantle couldn’t climb.
The Eagles held sway in the midfield after quarter time thanks to Nic Naitanui, Tim Kelly, Elliot Yeo and Jack Redden, but they also had the big guns to finish it. Kennedy starred. Luke Ryan did a mighty job on Jack Darling but Darling still weighed in.
The Dockers had owned territory for much of the first term and Taberner owned the air in their forward 50. He clunked a couple and should have gone to quarter time with three goals but got dozy with a stroll in goal and got run down by Tom Cole.
The Eagles were rolling in the second term when Naitanui got on top at centre bounces and Kelly, Redden and Yeo cashed in at ground level to send the Eagles forward.
And Fremantle had their hands full with the Eagles tall forwards. By the time the Eagles had a 29-point lead in the third, big forwards Kennedy and Darling had kicked five of their eight goals, mid-sized forward Jake Waterman had added another two.
The good part of the Dockers under Justin Longmuir is safer ball movement from defence. But the downside of that is that safe can easily become stagnant.
Too often in the second and third terms the Dockers tried to be too safe with their ball movement and got hemmed in on the back flanks and wings. At other times they kicked quickly when they needed poise and the Eagles interceptors - Jeremy McGovern, Brad Sheppard and Tom Barrass - picked them off.
The Eagles experience and class told. The Dockers were plucky but eventually outgunned, inevitably undermanned.
Mark DuffieldThe West Australian
Sunday, 19 July 2020 7:08PM
Mark Duffield
Here it is in a nutshell: It’s early last quarter and Fremantle summoned what was left of their energy and raised one last mighty effort.
Rory Lobb took a big pack mark and kicked a goal. West Coast’s five-goal lead became four. Then Lobb took another one.
Just as good, even closer to goal. He missed. Still they came. They pressed forward again. First gamer Michael Frederick dared to take the ball back into the corridor and go long, Matt Taberner clunked it, went back and missed everything.
Then the Eagles took the ball to the other end, 250-gamer Josh Kennedy got the ball in his hands after a holding free, and didn’t miss.
Thirty points clear again, game over, the Eagles own the derby record of 10 wins in a row.
It was fitting that Kennedy did it. It was his fourth goal and clinched the Glendinning-Allan Medal for him.
We had thought going into the game that the tall forwards would prove to be the hill that an undersized Fremantle couldn’t climb.
The Eagles held sway in the midfield after quarter time thanks to Nic Naitanui, Tim Kelly, Elliot Yeo and Jack Redden, but they also had the big guns to finish it. Kennedy starred. Luke Ryan did a mighty job on Jack Darling but Darling still weighed in.
The Dockers had owned territory for much of the first term and Taberner owned the air in their forward 50. He clunked a couple and should have gone to quarter time with three goals but got dozy with a stroll in goal and got run down by Tom Cole.
The Eagles were rolling in the second term when Naitanui got on top at centre bounces and Kelly, Redden and Yeo cashed in at ground level to send the Eagles forward.
And Fremantle had their hands full with the Eagles tall forwards. By the time the Eagles had a 29-point lead in the third, big forwards Kennedy and Darling had kicked five of their eight goals, mid-sized forward Jake Waterman had added another two.
The good part of the Dockers under Justin Longmuir is safer ball movement from defence. But the downside of that is that safe can easily become stagnant.
Too often in the second and third terms the Dockers tried to be too safe with their ball movement and got hemmed in on the back flanks and wings. At other times they kicked quickly when they needed poise and the Eagles interceptors - Jeremy McGovern, Brad Sheppard and Tom Barrass - picked them off.
The Eagles experience and class told. The Dockers were plucky but eventually outgunned, inevitably undermanned.