Wallaby heavies give Gregan hope for crunch Springbok clash: ‘I like the big bodies'
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No Fyfe farewell yet: Longmuir bullish on finals hopes
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 — 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 — 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.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Disappointed Ciraldo threatens to swing axe at Dogs
Cameron Ciraldo has threatened to swing the axe on hot-and-cold Canterbury, questioning some of his players' intensity and preparation on the run to the NRL finals. The Bulldogs' consistency from earlier in the season is eluding them at just the wrong time, with Friday's 32-12 loss to the Sydney Roosters their second in three games. Canterbury were first on the ladder for 13 consecutive weeks earlier in the year but are now in an uphill battle to secure a top-two finish with three games to go before finals. On Friday, Easts completely dominated the Bulldogs after half-time. Naufahu Whyte, notably, smashed past four Bulldogs defenders for one of the softer tries the league's best defensive side have conceded this year. "When the intensity went up, a few guys didn't want to go with it," said frustrated coach Ciraldo. In part, he blamed his own training practices for a drop in consistency. "We've had consistency for three quarters of the year. The last month has been disappointing," he said. "I sort of blame myself there because we've got some guys carrying niggles and they just get through training instead of actually training. "I'm going to stop that. If you can't train, it sort of results in a performance like that." Recruits Marcelo Montoya and Sitili Tupouniua are expected to recover from respective neck and hamstring injuries in the coming weeks. Back-up hooker Jake Turpin, utility Drew Hutchison and forwards Daniel Suluka-Fifita and Kurtis Morrin are among other proven first-graders currently out of the team. INTERCEPT 🙌 — NRL (@NRL) August 15, 2025 A rare bright moment for the Bulldogs at Allianz Stadium. Ciraldo warned there were plenty of candidates for game time if the rigours of the long season were weighing on incumbent players. "We've got a couple of guys available from injury possibly next week or the week after," Ciraldo said. "We've got a deep squad. We've got a lot of good players that didn't play tonight. If we don't want to prepare to win, then I'll put someone in who does want to prepare to win." The Bulldogs have one of the hardest fixture lists to finish the regular season as the only team playing three opponents that began round-24 in the top eight. Canterbury captain Stephen Crichton, a three-time premiership winner, said the timing was right for Ciraldo to call the Bulldogs out. "We're coming into the serious part of the year," he said. "If you don't get your mindset right coming into these big games, you're going to be sitting behind the posts most of the time (after conceding tries). "You'd rather have this conversation now than leading into finals."
Yahoo
an hour ago
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Road warrior Lions set sights on crashing AFL top-four
Brisbane coach Chris Fagan says he's a relieved man after watching his team secure a finals berth for a seventh straight year -- and now he wants them to go chase a prized top-four berth. The Lions booked their spot for September with a crushing 57-point win over Fremantle in Perth on Friday night. The 15.11 (101) to 5.14 (44) win improved Brisbane's record to 15-6-1 with just one more match to go - a tough fixture against Hawthorn at the Gabba next week. Seven years in a row of #AFLFinals appearances 👏 — AFL (@AFL) August 15, 2025 Brisbane's finals hopes would have been on thin ice had they lost to Fremantle, and Fagan was thrilled with the win on enemy territory. "It's a big relief," Fagan said. "I was sitting in my hotel room today thinking, 'if we lose tonight and we lose next week, we could miss finals having 14 wins and a draw - that's unheard of'. "But it was just a relief to have that out of the way. And it allows us to plan a little bit forward. "This is our seventh year in a row that we've qualified for finals. That's hard to do, particularly if you're an interstate club because you've got to travel more and there's a few more obstacles." Brisbane won the flag from fifth place last year. Fagan would love to see the Lions secure a double chance by finishing in the top-four this time around. "I'm sure it'll drive the group - that desire to finish top-four," he said. "I mean, there's probably 1001 different ways the ladder could end up next week, but we're in control of our own destiny." Brisbane have won 17 of their past 21 games away from home - a remarkable feat. "So we just should travel somewhere and play next week, to be honest," Fagan quipped. One major downer to come out of Friday's win was a dislocated shoulder to midfielder Jarrod Berry. Jarrod Berry left the field after this incident with Andrew Brayshaw.#AFLFreoLions — AFL (@AFL) August 15, 2025 Berry's left shoulder popped out when he was bowled over by Andrew Brayshaw in the final quarter, and it remains to be seen whether it will be a season-ending injury. "His other shoulder is the one he's had operated on ... so now the other one's popped out," Fagan said. "I don't know the full extent. Obviously, there'll be scans and stuff like that. "It didn't look good. But sometimes they can find a way to strap them up and get them through the season and have an operation at the end of the year."
