Chris Mayne

Brook “Boris” Kilpatrick reporting for AFANA

Fremantle flew in to Melbourne determined to continue the excellent form that had seen them win ten of their last 11 contests. Richmond was looking to beat a team above them on the Ladder for the first time this season. When the same two teams met on Fremantle’s turf earlier in the season, only one point separated them as the Dockers snatched victory in the dying seconds. The battle of fifth versus sixth certainly shaped up to be a defining game in the context of the remainder of the home and away season. A Dockers' win would have them knocking on the door of a Top Four finish and the prospect of an all important home Final. A Tigers' win would cement them well and truly in the Top Eight with only a tough run home standing between them and their first Finals appearance since 2001.

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium, Perth

No matter where each team is on the Ladder, the Western Derby is an exciting game, up for grabs every time it is played. Fremantle has had a lock on the contest over the past few seasons and, with both teams needing a win to consolidate Finals football, there was everything to play for in the 38th Derby at Patersons Stadium during Multicultural Round 16.

Fremantle got off to a flying start when Tendai Mzungu flew above the pack to haul in a great mark and kick the first goal. West Coast evened it up soon after when a poor kick in from a point gave Jack Darling a free kick on the 50 meter arc in the pocket. He booted a towering goal to register the Eagles’ first. From then on Fremantle dominated the quarter with some hard tackling and swarming around the contests. Chris Mayne kicked two goals and was ably supported by Michael Walters who kicked one of his own. It was starting to look ominous very early for West Coast until Josh Kennedy got a late one to keep them in the game. It was a scrambling, untidy quarter of football that had the Dockers up by 11 points when it ended.

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium, Perth

Fremantle pulled off a win by the barest of margins in a tight Round 5 game at Patersons Stadium, courtesy of a goal by slippery small forward Hayden Ballantyne with seconds to play. The Dockers had much of the play for the whole game but, as has become their "bête noire" in recent weeks, they could not land the killer blow to their opponents until the last minute.

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium, Perth

Essendon pulled off the "come from behind" win of the century at Patersons Stadium against the heavily fancied Fremantle Dockers. In what passes for rain these days in a drought-ridden Perth, steady drizzle fell over the ground to make conditions less than perfect for skillful football. The imperfect conditions

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium, Subiaco

Fremantle coach Ross Lyons’ plan to take his team to a Premiership this year started off on the right foot with a gutsy win in Round One over cross-town rivals the West Coast Eagles. Pundits had the Eagles as flag favorites before the ball was bounced but will be re-evaluating their tip after the Eagles failed to deliver in front of nearly 40,000 people at Patersons Stadium. Although West Coast got off to a cracking start in the first

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium in Perth

With the Top Eight determined the previous round, all that was left was the shuffling of the deck chairs to find out which teams would play against each other in the Finals. It was down to percentage for the Fremantle Dockers as to where they finished, with the possibility that they could meet the West Coast Eagles in an Elimination Final if they finished in eighth position. Coach Ross Lyon talked about “managing” the result, a veiled reference some took as meaning not playing to their best to achieve that result.

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium, Perth

Richmond was living its YOLO (You Only Live Once) creed as the players prepared for a roll of the dice against a tough Fremantle Dockers unit at home. Pre-match the Tigers said they were prepared to throw everything into the Round 21 game and leave nothing on the table in the encounter. There was a bit of skullduggery before the game when giant ruckman Aaron Sandilands replaced Jonathon Griffen who claimed to be injured in the warm-up. It was pure theater as there were rumors that the fix was on right from the start to upset the Tigers’ game plan.

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium

If the Fremantle Dockers had any aspirations of playing Finals football then a win against the Western Bulldogs at home was a must. The Bulldogs remained a mathematical chance to play in the Finals but this Round 15 game was a must-win game in that campaign. Both sides have been well out of form and languishing well down the ladder, but the Dockers went into the round with a one game lead over their rivals with a huge home crowd in attendance to urge them on.

Rick Browner reporting for AFANA from Patersons Stadium, Perth

On a par with “Dreamtime at the G” and the premier hometown rivalries, the Western Derby is one of the most anticipated clashes of the AFL round. These games are always full of skill, action and most of all spite. Derby number 35 came around with the "little brother" team, the Fremantle Dockers, having won the last two Derby encounters but the bookmakers had them as outsiders as the ball was bounced.

Rick Browner reporting from Patersons Stadium, Subiaco, Western Australia

Two teams representing the port towns of Perth and Adelaide met in Round 7 with much on the line. Port Adelaide Power has a good record at the “House of Pain”, Patersons Stadium, winning more than they have lost there against the Fremantle Dockers. The Dockers believe they are finalists this year and would be expected to flex some muscle against their struggling opponents, if only to show the competition that they are genuine contenders. Giant ruckman Aaron Sandilands was back from injury for the Dockers, while Danyle Pearce had been dropped due to lack of intent for Power. David Rodan was back after having previously suffered the same fate.