The purple tribe has spoken.
Fans would overwhelmingly prefer Fremantle to focus on bringing Melbourne star forward Jesse Hogan home to Perth, rather than fight to keep champion midfielder Lachie Neale from defecting to Brisbane.
An AFL.com.au poll on the topic attracted more than 27,000 votes, with 72 per cent of fans believing the Dockers should resume negotiations with the Demons for Hogan.
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In a perfect world the Dockers would love to have both players, with dual best and fairest winner Neale as a key member of a midfield that would provide scoring opportunities for Hogan.
But there is a very real possibility that Freo will end up with neither.
The Dockers have reached an impasse with the Lions over the contracted Neale, and they announced on Friday that they had withdrawn from talks for Hogan.
They are perceived to be asking too much for Neale while being prepared to give up too little for Hogan.
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Under new football chief Peter Bell, Fremantle has copped much flak for pulling out of dealings for Hogan, given it has chased him for several years, had finally convinced him to make the move and has now seemingly left him high and dry.
Much can happen behind closed doors before the close of the NAB AFL Trade Period on Wednesday night, and some suspect Freo's declaration on Hogan to be an act of brinkmanship.
There is a belief that their hardball approach has been emboldened by their significant victory 12 months ago when they remained similarly staunch and in the end got what they wanted, somehow convincing Gold Coast to hand over draft pick No.2 for Lachie Weller. (The Dockers then used that pick on gun midfield prospect Andrew Brayshaw.)
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As the poll result reinforces, Freo urgently needs a key forward and 23-year-old Hogan has just entered his peak period.
A penny for the thoughts of Fremantle coach Ross Lyon …
