I reckon that there's some big cities in close proximity to your small town. But, I'd love to hear some examples of what Perth lacks. I've lived in Perth, Melbourne, Adelaide, London and Dublin for at least 16 months in each. There's nothing I can think of that any of these cities has, that Perth doesn't. That's only my opinion, of course.
Proximity! Perth is the most isolated capital in the world - everything (other than Bali!) is so far away that we live in a bubble.
I love Freo, I'm born and bred and lived for 40 of my 45 years in the general Freo area and it's in my blood. But I've also lived in Singapore for 3 years and Europe for a couple and visited Melbourne / Sydney numerous times for extended periods and while Perth has the weather and the beaches, as far as a 'buzzing lifestyle' goes... Yeah, nah I wouldn't think so. My 20 year old is moving to Melbourne in January - and as much as I'll miss her, man I think it's the best thing she could be doing at her age...
When a young Victorian footballer has Melbourne and all that it offers and 10 teams (yes I'm including Geelong) to choose from if they want to change clubs, then there really is not much that we can offer to outdo that. Especially when there's Hawthorn and Geelong who between them have won six of the past eight GFs and can offer a player a successful club with a solid culture and a realistic shot at winning a premiership... It pushes us further down the list.
Then the COLAs - great beaches, good weather, glam nightlife, and the chance (unless you're Buddy) to play and win premierships, but not necessarily be recognised on the streets - AND it's only a 90 minute flight from Melbourne as opposed to three and a half hours... Well they look pretty enticing also.
And Port is on the up, close to Melbourne, so travel time is negligible, so they become a destination club too...
Tyranny of distance, and Perth not being seen as 'a place to be'... And the perception that once the Big Three finish our window closes - why would you come across the country to play for Freo?