No Fyfe farewell yet: Longmuir bullish on finals hopes

Yahoo

11 hours ago

Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir has told Nat Fyfe there won't be any farewells just yet as the Dockers brace themselves for a make-or-break final-round game against the Western Bulldogs.
Friday night's 57-point loss to Brisbane has left Fremantle's finals hopes hanging by a thread, with the game against the Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium on Sunday week set to decide the Dockers' fate.
The retiring Fyfe was given a guard of honour by both Brisbane and Fremantle after the Lions' impressive 15.11 (101) to 5.14 (44) win at Optus Stadium.
"They've always supported me" 💜Nat Fyfe pays tribute to the Fremantle faithful.#AFLFreoLions pic.twitter.com/fbV9aJa4ql
— AFL (@AFL) August 15, 2025
Supersub Fyfe came on for the start of the final quarter and finished with eight disposals and one clearance.
Even if Fremantle beat the Bulldogs next week, it may not be enough to earn them a home final, meaning Fyfe may not get the chance to play in front of the Purple Army again.
Fyfe will no doubt be the centre of attention leading into Fremantle's final-round fixture, but Longmuir believes there are still a few more games left to play for the two-time Brownlow medallist.
"I haven't said my farewells to him yet. I told him that after the game. We've got plenty of footy left in us," a defiant Longmuir said.
"We've won 11 of our last 13. I know everyone will be doom and gloom and write us off again after tonight, but I've got a lot of faith in this team.
One of the greatest we've ever seen 💜#AFLFreoLions pic.twitter.com/JHzjveAlJe
— AFL (@AFL) August 15, 2025
"It didn't go our way tonight, but like I said to them after the game, we'll review it the same way, get better, dust ourselves off and we'll go again."
Fremantle missed the finals last year with a 12-10-1 record, losing their last four games to fall from third to 10th.
The Dockers (15-7) could suffer a similar fate this year, but Longmuir is backing his maturing group to get the job done.
"We've grown a lot. We've already won three more games than last year," Longmuir said.
"We were playing in spits and spurts at the start of the year, we've got some players back and found our groove.
"It didn't give our way tonight, but everyone wants to talk about the last four games of last year.
"We had some injuries through that period to really key players. People forget about that as well.
"But we'll get better, and take our best over to Melbourne and play the Dogs."
In a huge boost for Fremantle, star midfielder Hayden Young is on track to return from an adductor strain against the Bulldogs.
"He's a good chance for next week," Longmuir said.
"We've got longer break. We'll be able to get some work into him, and he's a good chance."
Fremantle conceded the opening five goals on Friday and had 0.8 to their name before finally kicking their first major late in the second term.
Longmuir wasn't sure whether the weight of the occasion or the emotion surrounding Fyfe's retirement had affected the group.