FREMANTLE came to the MCG on Sunday for the clash with Richmond with high expectations. Four wins from their last five encounters there with Tigers gave some cause for that optimism.
The Dockers left a few hours later suitably humbled. But also, as coach Ross Lyon noted, with a few lessons learned.
The first is the need for speed. Lyon was complimentary of just about everything about the Tigers as they served up a 77-point thrashing of his side, but he noted firstly how quick the Tigers were with ball in hand.
"It was good feedback to us and where we'd like to get to with our list," he said.
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The next was strength. The Tigers break tackles. Most players in his young team often don't.
"Dustin Martin and Nat Fyfe break tackles. Players like (Andrew) Brayshaw, (Adam) Cerra and (Taylin) Duman get tackled and stripped, so we just need to keep on working and to build.
"You can talk to them but until they feel what it is like then they understand how long it takes. It took Alex Rance seven years."
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The other lesson from Sunday might come with behaviours around the game.
"Our interstate (form) hasn't been as good as home … we have to have an expectation that when we play away from home we perform. We don't want to have to have the comforts of home to perform, so we have to address that," Lyon said.
In Andrew Brayshaw, Cerra and others, Lyon knows he has some potential 200-gamers in his midst. But for young Victorians in their first season playing a game back in their home state come other issues.
"It's not the routine. It's the same since I've been here and that works. It's lots of things," he said.
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"It's young players back in Melbourne. They see their player manager, they see their mother, they see their grandmother, their girlfriend and their mates for a coffee and that's six interactions when you could be relaxing and preparing for your footy.
"They wouldn't even realise that's straining them. There are a lot of outputs they don't necessarily need. They don't need to live in a bubble, but you need some time for yourself and that's what we need to look at.
"Our senior players will share those experiences."
There were some positives. Lyon pointed to Cerra's second half and Brennan Cox helping straighten up the Dockers in the third quarter when he moved to the forward line.
They kept the Tigers goalless in a quarter for the first time in almost a year and kicked three themselves to get within four goals and back into the game ever so briefly late in the third term. Darcy Tucker showed a bit and Hayden Ballantyne had six touches on the wing.
Fyfe was outstanding while Aaron Sandilands dominated the ruck. They held the clearance edge 44-22. They at least forced Richmond to be reactive.
"But they're a great team," Lyon continued, "with a real belief in what they do. They're hard and seasoned because they've done it under real pressure. They would never believe they're beaten."
Lyon was also asked about reports of inappropriate language used in the harassment case involving a female Fremantle staffer that that has been dealt with by the AFL under its respect and responsibility policy.
"We all sit under the umbrella of the policy and no one is in a position to comment further," he said. "I understand the enquiries and your test is public interest. People see that's in the public interest and that's not for me to debate, but I don't create the system, I'm part of it and I respect it."
