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A string of lacklustre performances capped off by back-to-back losses to West Coast and North Melbourne have failed to quell the belief of the Fremantle faithful.
In fact many exist in state of complete comfort, convinced the team’s recent form slump is part of an elaborate premiership blueprint devised by mastermind coach and perceived AFL Nostradamus, Ross Lyon.
Lyon’s tactical nous and foresight have earned him genuine cult status, and more recently a religious following, with some revering the three-time grand final-losing coach as the greatest tactician to have ever lived.
Devotees of the ‘Church of Lyon’ insist that it was the coach and not the players who got Fremantle to the 2013 Grand Final after Lyon opted to rest nearly half of the senior squad in the Round 23 clash with 16th-placed St Kilda.
The lowly Saints belted the Dockers to the tune of 71-points, but the week of rest positioned the team for a genuine finals assault.
Despite losing to eventual premiers Hawthorn, the 2013 finals campaign remains the most successful season in the club’s 20-year history, a fact largely credited to Lyon’s coaching abilities.
Dockers’ fans and patrons of the Church of Lyon have been talking up Lyon in recent weeks, clearly impressed with the facade of a form-slump he has managed to construct.
Speaking to members of the sect, it is clear they believe that the master coach has the team exactly where he wants them going into a finals series.
“Ross the Boss has everything figured out. He’s 50 moves ahead. He’s basically Bradley Cooper’s character from that movie Limitless,” said one patron.
“We’ve all seen what he’s capable of. We all know that he has complete and absolute control of this season. Ross, the great one, will not disappoint.”
Like many success-starved Dockers supporters, members of the Church of Lyon remain confident Fremantle have shown enough this season to validate their spot on top of the ladder, pointing to the team’s barnstorming start to the season which reaped nine straight wins.
“We’ve already shown that we can beat anyone, anywhere, anytime. I’m not sure how anyone can doubt us,” one member stated.
“Ross has been there before. In fact, legend dictates that he deliberately dropped the 2013 Grand Final so we could be better positioned for long-term success.
“Given all he’s done for us, I’m not sure how you can doubt that.”
Despite being within striking distance of a maiden minor premiership, Fremantle’s recent performances have been anything but convincing, with the team struggling to recapture the sizzling ball movement and scoring ability that stunned the competition in the opening half of the season.
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