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“Flat-track bullies”: AFL legends weigh in on frustrating Freo
Jaiden Sciberras • May 8th, 2025 8:36 am
Luke Hodge has weighed in on Fremantle’s dire situation following a disastrous loss to St Kilda last Friday night.
With expectations of a finals berth, the Dockers under Justin Longmuir have failed to deliver in 2025 to date, sitting at four wins and four losses following the 61-point demolition at the hands of Ross Lyon and the Saints.
Labelling the side as “flat-track bullies”, Hodge did not hold back in his assessment of the Dockers thus far.
“They’re frustrating,” Hodge told SEN’s Whateley.
“I’d hate to ask the Fremantle supporters over there about what their frustration is, because you see them at home and they’re up and about.
“You talk about ‘they’ve got a good midfield’, and they do, but then when you go interstate… you hear all the good teams talk about anywhere, anytime, anyplace.
“If you want to be a top four, top eight team, you need to win away from home.
“That comes mindset. As soon as you jump on that plane, you need to have the mindset of ‘I’m going away, we’re coming back with the four points’.
“That whole trip has to be about what can I, and what can we do as a group to make sure we beat this opportunity.
“It feels like Freo get there, they run out on the ground and it's like, ‘oh, we're playing footy again’. You need to build up, playing away is always a tough part of football, but you need to have a steely mindset, a resolve to go and be successful at it, look forward to it and enjoy it.
“To be honest, they’re flat-track bullies. That's what it looks like at the moment, and they need to be looking internally to see how can we change this around.”
“They have got good leaders, because I've seen them do it when things are going their way.
“The thing about it is you need to do it when things aren't going your way. Who looks internal, who looks external, who's going to go and talk or help someone rather than go and try and find a cheap kick when you want to get the ball because your stats aren't to the same standard as where you want it to be.
“The thing about it is you need to do it when things aren't going your way. Who looks internal, who looks external, who's going to go and talk or help someone rather than go and try and find a cheap kick when you want to get the ball because your stats aren't to the same standard as where you want it to be.
“If you ask a lot of teams who go up against Fremantle, if you get (the game) on your terms, they won't give a yelp.
“It's a massive month for Freo. If they lose the next 4, their season's done. Simple as that.”
Western Bulldogs legend Brad Johnson was also honest in his assessment of the Dockers, labelling their performance as immature while struggling to determine if the side can turn it around in time.
“It was a performance that was bitterly disappointing," Johnson told SEN Sportsday.
“It was immature Fremantle. We all thought they were going be this mature premiership contender in 2025.
“They are going to have to prove a lot of people wrong if they become that kind of team by the end of the year.
“The week before their conversations, they all took ownership around it, all the leaders within the club, they took it in terms of what they classed against Adelaide as a gritty win.
“‘We were tougher, we were more ruthless we were better defensively’. One week later they were none of that whatsoever.
“Their star-studded midfield was absolutely smashed by (Jack) Macrae, (Jack) Steele and then youngsters (Hugo) Garcia and (Hugh) Boxshall on debut.
“They are up and down like a yo-yo. There is no level ability with where they are at at the moment.
“They were 20-points down at half time. They were playing terribly but it’s only 20 points, you’d expect them to come out, reassess where they’re at, get themselves together and pick up their performance.
“It got worse after half time.
“Where do they go from this particular point? They’ve got the makings… but they’re not delivering as a collective group, and they’ve got a lot to work out in the short term.”
Fremantle will look to get back on track as they take on an undermanned Collingwood side this Thursday night.
