Frequently asked Fremantle questions

by LES EVERETT

FREMANTLE has begun its make or break season with a loss.

New coach Mark Harvey went for experience over youth, tried one or two little experiments and may have received answers to some questions.

Q1. Can an AFL team have Shaun McManus, Mark Johnson, Matthew Carr and Dean Solomon in it?

A. No. And really the answer was known prior to this game. Harvey got four goals out of this lot of willing goers on Saturday but surely now knows other more dynamic options are required. Solomon, who will miss round two through suspension, has been the best of these.

Q2. What is the best ruck line up?

A. In the absence of Aaron Sandilands last year Fremantle came up with something. Daniel Gilmore teamed up with Robert Warnock in the ruck and it worked. On Saturday Harvey chose to use Michael Johnson in the 'pinch-hitting' ruck role and it failed. Johnson is potentially a very fine player and Fremantle is taking a big risk by throwing him into the ruck where the chance of injury is increased. Warnock will be ready soon and the Dockers need to have the confidence to use two real ruckmen except when weather conditions are against it.

Q3. Why can't Fremantle win the ball out of the centre?

A. The problem on Saturday was not about getting first hands on the ball it was about clean possession. Fremantle has some fumblers in the midfield. Many of Collingwood's clearances came after a Docker had mishandled.

Q4. Can Chris Tarrant play?

A. This is a very serious question and the once-talented Tarrant better answer it soon. If he's not up to it, and he was useless at the MCG on Saturday, Fremantle will need to look for a different role for him even if it means he's the highest paid player in the WAFL for a time while he learns to play.

Q5. Can Fremantle handle monster forwards?

A. It's beginning to look like a problem area. Anthony Rocca, Fraser Gehrig, Cameron Mooney and Jonathan Brown have got hold of Fremantle in recent times and it looks like a plan for helping the admirable Antoni Grover needs to be devised. Maybe Tarrant could part of the answer.

They say you learn more from a loss than a win so perhaps Harvey's first real game as coach (along with an entirely new coaching group) could prove very valuable.

24 March 2008

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