What is slow?

by BEN STANWIX

IDEAS don't take long to become received wisdom in footy, no matter how bonkers they are.

My least favourite at the moment concerns Fremantle's midfield. In essence, so the story goes, the midfield is slow - too slow to be a finals contender, let alone a premiership threat.

This from a contributor to esteemed fan site dockerland.com: "They are all slow, short and workman-like - can run hard to contests but can't win clearances! We need a player/players who can turn this weakness around."

The allure of this argument will be obvious to anyone who regularly sat in the stands through 2005. A lot of Fremantle jumpers chased a lot of opposition ones without appearing to catch very many.

It is, nonetheless, complete rubbish.

Certainly Fremantle's midfield is not especially quick, but this lack of speed is not the reason behind the midfield's poor showing this season. The popular misnomer that it is all about speed comes largely from the rather uncomfortable rise of the mob down the road. West Coast came less than a goal from the premiership this year largely on the strength of a glittering midfield - a midfield that is very fast.

Trouble is, Dockers fans who are screaming for the club to draft, trade or genetically engineer a purple speedster are selling the Eagles‰ midfield very short. They are, curse them all, more than just fast.

Each is skilled, hard at the ball, well-drilled and dangerous in front of goal.

But most importantly, with the exception of Adelaide recruit Tyson Stenglein - traded to the club at the end of last year - every player in the Eagles' midfield has played their entire career at West Coast. The most recent to debut was Chris Judd in 2002. He‰s been playing and training alongside Ben Cousins (1996), Michael Braun (1997) Chad Fletcher (1999), Andrew Embley (1999), Daniel Kerr (2001) and Dean Cox (2001) his entire career.

Compare this to Fremantle. Last year it added Josh Carr, Heath Black and Jarrad Schofield to the midfield. In 2003 it added Des Headland, Byron Schammer and Aaron Sandilands. They joined Peter Bell (2001), Matthew Carr (2001), Troy Cook (2000) and Paul Hasleby (2000). Justin Longmuir debuted for the Dockers in 1999 but has only moved onto the ball full time in the last couple of years. Black, Schofield, both Carr brothers, Headland, Bell and Cook all came from other clubs.

Here are two theories. One, to win the Dockers need to add another player to this midfield mix who will bring the speed the side is currently lacking.

Two, to win the Dockers need to string several seasons together with the same talented midfielders playing alongside each other.

If you think a good midfield is mostly about speed, the first theory is probably the best one. In fact, you could also chuck out slower players like Bell, Hasleby, Cook and Josh Carr and instead use quicks already on the list such as Jeff Farmer, James Walker, Roger Hayden and Luke McPharlin through the middle.

But if you think a good midfield is more about chemistry, understanding and playing for team mates, the second theory looks a lot more promising. Personally I prefer the second one, and I hope it's the one Fremantle persist with in the coming years.

From the Fremantle Rooster.

GET 'IM OFF - Paul Hasleby is part of a Fremantle midfield many supporters believe is too slow to win a premiership, despite the players' considerable talent. Photo by Les Everett

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