FREMANTLE has been left devastated by its heartbreaking Grand Final loss against Brisbane, with coach Justin Longmuir conceding the team had not handled the final moments of Saturday's thriller well against one of the "best teams of all time".

The coach refused to point the finger, however, at the club's post-goal 'Wharfie Time' activation, which was played when the Dockers held a game-high 17-point lead with four minutes to play. 

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Brisbane kicked two goals in a minute from that moment to reignite the contest and finished off with another pair of goals from Logan Morris to win their third straight premiership, leaving the Dockers shocked in an unforgettable end to a Grand Final. 

"We're devastated. There's no sugar-coating it. I've never felt so disappointed, but I've got this massive sense of pride in the group," Longmuir said. 

"We came to play, we executed a plan, created so many opportunities for ourselves, and I thought we competed our backsides off all day. 

"I thought there were times we got challenged throughout the game, but when we responded, we put ourselves in such a great position to go on and win it, and we just didn't quite play out the 120 minutes. 

"Clearly, we were playing against one of the better teams of all time. It was their fourth Grand Final, they've won three in a row, one of the best teams of all time, they just found something and we didn't have an answer for their run late. 

"I'm just so proud of the way we competed all day. But there's no sugar-coating the result, it's so disappointing and devastating. A mix of emotions."

'Wharfie Time' has become a phenomenon this season after it was used in round nine against Hawthorn to inspire a come-from-behind win, and then again in the semi-final win against Geelong. 

Longmuir said that its use in the Grand Final was not a factor in the result, and he would be happy for it to continue in 2027.  

"Of course I would. I don't think that has anything to do with it," he said.  

"Does Charlie [Cameron's] 'Country Roads' celebration have any impact on the game? Probably not. 

"I don't think you can put it down to that, I think you can put it down to one of the better teams of all time [with their] backs against the wall, and we just didn't have an answer to that."

Fremantle lost inspirational captain Alex Pearce to an Achilles injury early in the third quarter in a pivotal moment in the game, forcing Oscar McDonald onto Morris as the Dockers reconfigured their backline.

While McDonald performed well, Morris stepped up late to take his moment with two goals in the final two minutes while Pearce watched on from the bench. 

"Clearly we missed his leadership late, he gives us so much in that aspect of the game," Longmuir said. 

"I feel really sorry for him, he would have loved to have been out there with his teammates.

"He's putting on a brave face. Everyone's devastated, I'm sure he's devastated. Not only for today's result, but it looks like it might cost him a bit of time on the sidelines and another stint in rehab. 

"He can hold his head up high. He's led us so well across the course of the year, and stood up in really key moments to allow us to get here. Unfortunately, it didn't go his way today, and I feel for him on that front."

Longmuir called his players together on the field in the moments after the final siren and told them to "have each other's backs" in the aftermath of a devastating defeat and not to be too hard on themselves. 

He paid tribute to star midfielder Shai Bolton, who became the fifth player in VFL/AFL history to win the Norm Smith Medal in a losing team, finishing with a team-high 26 disposals and nine inside 50s. 

"I think he's emulated his whole finals series. He's been in this position a lot, and I think that experience showed today," Longmuir said. 

"Not only his ability to win the ball, but to make sure it either gets to the outside through his own endeavours, or feeding it to others on the outside.

"He's had a super finals series and today was a big part of that. I thought we had a lot of winners on the day. I thought most of our players can hold their head up high with the way they performed, and clearly Shai was one of them."