Review Pre-Season Games 2023
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Fremantle’s new midfield coach Joel Corey is adding more flair, movement and proactivity to Dockers’ star-studded engine room
Freo’s clash with Port pitted new midfield coach Joel Corey against former boss Josh Carr for the first time. ELIZA REILLY analyses what we learned.3 min read
March 7, 2023 - 9:00AM
Fremantle’s remodelled midfield has a new creative license.
Fremantle’s midfield has been given licence to play with more flair this season under new midfield coach Joel Corey.
Corey has taken the reins of the Dockers’ star-studded midfield this season after Josh Carr returned home to South Australia to take up a role with Port Adelaide.
The three-time premiership Cat has been a development coach at Fremantle for the past two seasons and has been instrumental in the trajectory of the Dockers’ emerging midfielders.
Vice-captain Caleb Serong said Corey’s influence had gone to another level after stepping into an assistant role under senior coach Justin Longmuir.
“He’s someone that gives you a lot of confidence. He wants you to go out there and back yourself,” Serong said. “As you can probably see, there’s a little bit more movement around stoppage now. He wants us to be proactive.
“It’s understanding where we want to hit the ball, where our strengths are and trying to use those as much as we can. We can get to work with supreme confidence really that he’s got our back. We’ve learnt a lot from him taking over but the crux of our game has stayed the same and that’s our contest and the ability to spread.
“Nothing has changed from the basics of our game but he’s added a bit of flair.”
Thursday’s 31-point pre-season win over Port Adelaide was just the second time Corey has taken charge of Fremantle’s midfield against opposition.
It also pitted him against former superior Carr for the first time.
And in the battle of mentee and mentor, Corey claimed the points.
Fremantle won hit-outs (44-26), clearances (39-33), centre clearances (12-10) and stoppage clearances (27-23). Will Brodie (36 disposals and nine clearances), Andrew Brayshaw (36 and three) and Serong (32 and eight) all dominated while new recruit Jaeger O‘Meara overcame a slow start to finish with 22 touches.
Those four players combined for 58 handball receives, an indication of the group’s ability to link up out of stoppages. The talented quartet also had a direct impact on the scoreboard.
Against Port, Fremantle scored one goal from a centre clearance, three from throw-in clearances around the ground and four from pressure and turnovers. One was sourced from coast to coast, one came courtesy of a free kick and three started with intercept marks.
The Dockers also kicked three goals from centre clearances against Adelaide a week earlier.
But, crucially, Fremantle only conceded one goal to the Crows from a clearance and none to Port. Fremantle’s on-ballers are just as invested in defence as offence.
Further analysis of the engine room’s performance against Port reveals that the fundamentals of Fremantle’s style have not drastically changed under Corey.
The Dockers on average won the most disposals out of any club last year with 383.3. As a collective, they had 397 against Port. Led by Sean Darcy, Fremantle averaged 42.9 hit-outs last season and had 44 in its final pre-season hitout.
Kicks (218.5 and 233), handballs (164.8 and 164), inside 50s (51.7 and 45) and clearances (37.9 and 39) followed a similar pattern.
The big queries that will be answered early in the season are how Fremantle manage Darcy and big-money recruit Luke Jackson in the ruck. Where will ‘Mr. Fix It’ James Aish be best utilised? And can O’Meara fill the void left by retired club great David Mundy?
But the biggest question is whether Fremantle’s stable midfield can connect with a new-look forward line. Matt Taberner, Josh Treacy and Nat Fyfe played just 24 games combined last season but the trio are expected to spearhead the Dockers’ attack in 2023.
Fremantle has said it’s making minor modifications to its stingy team defence. But the focus has been put on ball movement and consistently seeking out scoring opportunities.
“It’s always going to get better,” Serong said of the evolving midfield-forward chemistry.
“Our aim is to improve every week. We had a few times during match simulation and intra-clubs where we had the As versus the Bs and we were able to get our cohesion starting to work then. We’re only three or four games in with that mix but that connection is only going to get greater.
“We’re getting some good looks but there have been times when there are better options.”
There is still much to play out for Fremantle’s midfield in 2023 and questions about just how far a firing engine room can take the Dockers. What we do know is that they expect a similar DNA with a touch more proactivity.
That is the Corey mantra.
“He’s got a wealth of experience and his knowledge of the game is beyond anything I’ve heard,” said second-year midfielder Neil Erasmus. “It’s been a real privilege to learn from someone like him and none of us take it for granted.”
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