Geelong v Fremantle Why would anyone go to Geelong? For Fremantle it wasn't a matter of choice. They'd been their before and they knew the place was no good - for starters, it's full of Geelong supporters and if you needed another reason not to go there, Fremantle were staring down a zero percent win record - but the AFL insisted that Fremantle have another crack at it so they packed their bags and headed east. Fremantle weren't having the best of weeks. Two very forgettable performances had put them at the mercy of their critics. The boots were out and the bag'n wag'n was travelling along at a blistering pace. It wasn't a good time to be a Fremantle player, it was a worse time to be a Fremantle coach, and there was little sign of any respite with the world informing them that it was impossible to beat Geelong at Kardinia Park. It seemed like May was going to be a long month. But something happened on the flight to Melbourne. Most people will be able to tell you there are two Fremantle teams - Good Fremantle and Evil Fremantle. Evil Fremantle usually play in Melbourne and refuse to even attempt to play football. Good Fremantle are a thing of beauty. Most people will also be able to tell you which Fremantle team has shown up by the first bounce of the ball. This week it was Good Fremantle who'd hopped on the plane. The Dockers wasted no time getting the ball out of the centre and once it hit their forward line it was on for young and old. Paul Hasleby got a foot onto the ball at half forward and a loping Luke McPharlin just let the ball fall into his arms. He went back, kicked the goal and the Geelong supporters were in a mild state of shock. It wasn't as easy back in the centre this time for Fremantle, the umpires saw to that. They gave the Cats a string of soft frees but fortunately Kingsley kicked like the Hunter variety and turned the ball over. The Dockers ran the ball out of defence. Scott Thornton , looking for all money like he was leading a one man revival of A Flock of Seagulls, bolted through the centre of the ground and delivered a lace out, sponsors logo to the camera pass to debutant Ryan 'Chances' Crowley. A nervy Crowley missed the goal but the tight Freo defence gave him a second chance, brought the ball back down the ground and, thanks to a shove in the back, Chances brought up the Dockers second goal. Two goals up and looking like a different side, Fremantle were tackling hard, kicking long, running all over the ground and playing like a team with something to prove - just the sort of football they were going to need to beat these Geelong Cats. A couple more soft frees had Geelong get a few kicks but they were unable to kick a score of consequence, but it was the fast paced, high skills of the Dockers that were worth watching. Once again putting daylight between himself and the next best player in the AFL, Matthew Pavlich beat off three Cats at centre half forward to bring down a strong grab. He wasted no time getting the ball on and put it to the top of the goal square. In a delightful twist, Paul Medhurst went up for the mark, dropped it, and Luke McPharlin crumbed another Fremantle goal. This was turning into a route. Another yellow mongrel robbed Fremantle of another centre clearance but the 21 Geelong players were no match for Fremantle's 18. They put up The Purple Curtain across the half back line and stopped the Cats in their tracks. Fremantle drove the ball forward again but lost it in the forward pocket and the Cats started to run into attack. What no one had counted on was a little bloke by the name of Jeffery. Jeff went at David Johnson like a dog after a tennis ball. He mauled him with a ferocious tackle, earned himself a free kick and then dobbed a goal from what he is now telling people was 75m out. Fremantle were 4 goals up and looking red hot. Even the umpires were in shock and forgot to give Geelong a free kick out of the centre as a consequence. With that obstacle out of the way, the Dockers went to town. Coook and Longmuir combined to move the ball forward quickly. Medhurst took a beauty on the flank before playing on to the top of the square. McPharlin couldn't fight off the handful of Geelong defenders and pull in the make but Chances Crowley was there to pick up the loose ball and slot one through from the three rows behind the fat bloke with the Ford hat on. 27 points up with ten minutes still to play in the first quarter was officially a dream start. If the game were being playing back in Perth, they would have started the wave by now. As it was, the Geelong supporters had turned from a stunned silence to an angry mob. Unfortunately for them they couldn't take their frustrations out on the umpires because they were doing their utmost to keep the crowd on side and Geelong in the game. Surprisingly though, it wasn't the umpires that lead to Geelong's first goal. A slight fumble from Josh Carr say him get caught out. He handpassed to space to avoid getting pinged for holding the ball but the space was quickly filled by three Geelong players. They raffled it off, Gary Ablett's kid had the winning ticket and he ran in to kick the goal. It started a run for the Cats and they put through another couple of quick goals to take a bit of polish off the Dockers start. Freo went into the first change 9 points up but, more importantly, playing the better footy. A great start for Fremantle but with three long quarters to go, Chris Connolly was refusing to concede a smile. The weather was going to stay fine but, with Fremantle doing so well, people were doing all sorts of calculations and experimentations to try and find an excuse. They looked to the wind and declared that Fremantle would be kicking into a 5 goal breeze in the second quarter. If there was a gale blowing, it wasn't effecting the balance of man giant Aaron Sandilands. He tapped it straight down the throat of Paul Hasleby and the Dockers were away. A massive torpedo from Paul Medhurst, now being claimed as 80m long, landed in the arms or Jeff Farmer who was camped in the goal square. The Wiz had no trouble kicking the goal and Freo were back up by 15 points. It didn't take long for Farmer to get back into the action again and, after giving the Cats no option but the boundary line, he earned a rare free kick for deliberate out of bounds. Never one to make like a chandelier, he played on to Heath Black. Black followed suit, played on around the mark and put his raking left foot into action for the Dockers second goal of the quarter There was now no doubt that the Good Fremantle had shown up this week, they were playing some of their best football of the season. But Geelong aren't a bad side either and it wasn't long before the Cats started to get a bit of the ball. Normally that wouldn't have been a big issue for the Freo defenders but a few defensive errors had The Purple Curtain starting to look like The Purple Strips Like the Ones at the Fish and Chip shop. Short a big body, the defence wasn't helped by some poor mistakes and a lot of turnovers (names don't need to be named but a few of the Fremantle players were overheard referring to Shaun McManus as 'Apples') and it was starting to hurt. They let the Cats get a sniff of scoring and they went after it like it was a bowl of Snappy Tom. Geelong put on 4 goals straight and snatched the lead from the Dockers to go into the half time break 3 points up. It was a cruel blow to Fremantle who'd worked so hard and played so well but had you offered them a half time margin of 3 points before the game, they would have jumped at the deal. There was only one thing Fremantle needed to concentrate on at this point and that was making sure the Evil Fremantle didn't sneak into the change rooms during the break. There were no goatees or hooved foot on the players when they emerged from the rooms but there were other worrying signs when play started. Geelong moved the ball out of the centre so fast that Fremantle were left with little to do but shake their fists and yell. By the fifth shake of Justin Longmuir's first, Lonergan had kicked a goal and the Cats moved out to a 9 point lead. It was almost a repeat performance when the ball came back to the middle for the second bounce but this time Freo had a few extra tricks up their sleeve. Apples McManus threw himself at the ball with as little regard for his own well being as many Freo supporters. He ripped the ball off Cameron Ling, gave it to Paul Hasleby and the Dockers were away. Hasleby unloaded with a big, high floating drop punt from the centre and landed the ball in the up stretched hands of Aaron Sandilands. The sun may have been out but, as he kicked the goal, a shiver went down the spine of the thirty odd thousands Geelong supporters as the thought of Aaron Sandilands taking contested marks in the forward line hit home. He was going to be unstoppable. It didn't take long for the ball to be reacquainted with the hands of Aaron Sandilands and this time he drilled a pass onto the chest of Jeffery Farmer. Farmer loves being the bloke who gets to put his team in front and he made no mistakes, kicking Fremantle's ninth. After a mild scare with Geelong getting another free kick in front of goals, the Dockers brought the ball back forward and Apples kicked it to Pavlich, Pavlivh went to Heath Black and Black moved it on to the big fella once again. The Sandilands kick fell short but little Justin Longmuir was hanging around at the back of the square, took the mark, played on and kicked a goal so casually that half the Geelong cheersquad fell asleep watching him. Unfortunately, The Sandilands Show was interrupted by a lucky goal to Kingsley of Geelong but it didn't take long for a couple of other former rookies, One Melee Dodd and Chances Crowley, to combine for a goal with such skill and precisions that it would make 200 game Brownlow medallists swoon. The three quarter time siren sounded with the Dockers 8 points up. They had half an hour of footy to go, kicking into the wind and the sun and with a stadium full of people wishing them physical harm. What better way could you think of to spend a Saturday afternoon. The fourth quarter started in fantastic style for the Dockers. A bit of dash from Mundy and another bit of One Melee Dodd's trademark foot skills had the ball headed straight down Aaron Sandilands's throat. Milburn was left with little option but to go the scrag and, for a nice change, the umpires were right onto him. Sandilands took the free kick from the goal square and the Dockers moved out to a 14 point lead. Despite some courageous marking from Polak and Apples in defence, Fremantle couldn't stop the massive push forward by Geelong, desperate not to end their unbeaten record at home. For the first time of the day, Gary Ablett's kid broke through one of Troy Cook's bear trap tackles, fired out a hand pass to Milburn and Geelong had their answer. It was the first of two for the Cats and Ottens drilled one to get his new side within a couple of points. It was crunch time for the Dockers. They needed a win and they'd led most of the day but Geelong were coming at them like the freight train. They had to stand up in the centre square and get the ball forward at all costs. Some fiery tackling had Hasleby off the ground with the blood rule but it didn't slow the Freo midfielders down. They hit everything at full tilt and it came down to a situation that all Freo supporters love. An open forward line, a loose ball in the pocket and Jeff Farmer leading a pack of opposition players to the ball. He paddled the ball in front of him, tapped it under his legs, stood up and nudged it towards Luke McPharlin. By the time McPharlin had picked up the ball, The Wiz was off. He fired out a handpass, Jeff took controlled, goosified a couple of Cats and snapped the goal of the year. Even the Geelong supporters couldn't help but stand and applaud. Freo had a goal and a bit to play with but there was still 10 minutes left on the clock. To make things even more dramatic, Luke McPharlin landed the wrong way on his leg and was carted from the ground. It was now just a matter of hanging on. Freo started to chip the ball around. They held things up, slowed thing down and frustrated the Geelong players no end. The Cats dug deep once again and when they finally got their hands on the ball they were even more desperate. A few pings at goals were rushed through by the Dockers and the margin soon moved to within a goal. What followed was five of the most excruciating minutes a football supporter should ever have to endure, as the Dockers tried to keep possession of the ball. Then disaster. Geelong got the ball and booted it long down the guts. Brad Ottens took a grab inside fifty, directly in front. Suddenly Fremantle were wishing they could have all that time they'd chewed up back. But there was still some Richmond left in Otto and he kicked it like a drunken money with bad arthritis. With the clock running out of friends, Fremantle didn't bugger about with it once they got it back. They went forward where Matthew Pavlich was waiting to make himself a hero. He took a mark inside fifty and showed Ottens how a champion does it. Kicking the goal after the siren and securing Freo a win for the ages.
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