- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
After seven retirements, one de-listing and Josh Carr’s imminent departure, Fremantle coach Mark Harvey has dubbed his AFL team the modern-day version of the 1993 Baby Bombers.
Essendon’s batch of youngsters shocked the footballing fraternity when they surged to grand final glory in ’93 under the astute tutelage of master coach Kevin Sheedy.
Fremantle started 2008 — a season in which the club notched just six wins — with the oldest list in the league, but will begin 2009 with one of the youngest.
The departures of Peter Bell, 32, Shaun McManus, 32, Jeff Farmer, 31, Mark Johnson, 30, Heath Black, 29, and Matthew Carr, 29, makes Antoni Grover and Dean Solomon the oldest men at the club at just 28.
Harvey, who featured in the baby Bombers’ premiership side, said the mass exodus of players this year, combined with the emergence of several young stars, heralded a new era at Fremantle similar to what Essendon experienced just before their success in ’93.
“Yeah, just similar to that, that’s the era,” Harvey said.
“If I can compare, not that I like to compare, but that’s the sort of group we are looking at.
“I’m not talking about being a contender here, I’m talking about how we can get a group of young guys who are all heading in the right direction as soon as we can and that’s what lies ahead of us.”
Fremantle are set to load up on talent in November’s national draft to complement a raft of up-and-coming youngsters, led by Rising Star winner Rhys Palmer.
“The evolvement of those younger players has been a real pleasure to sit back and watch and say ‘OK, maybe we need to get a couple more younger players here and add to the mix of it’ and hopefully the timing of all of it is right, knowing that we’ve got some really good older players too by the way,” Harvey said.
“This is not just a young man’s club, we have got some serious quality players that are just about probably in the prime of their careers.”
But he said retaining the likes of out-of-contract ruckman Robert Warnock and playmaker David Mundy was a must.
“I just like to say they’re important fabric of the club and we need to keep them, so that’s where it’s at,” Harvey said of the Victorian pair who are in hot demand.
“We’ve gone through the review process, we’ve gone through general conversations with management about contracts and hopefully it’s getting closer.”
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.
Was Toby Pink lucky to be awarded this goal?
Apart from one five-goal game, GWS forward Toby Greene has only kicked six goals from the other eight games. He's traditionally had success against the Western Bulldogs.
Bayley Fritsch should become an even more important player from a structural perspective, given key forward Jacob van Rooyen will be unavailable due to concussion.
For the last few weeks, there has been a rumbling in the air around Victoria. Everyone has sensed it, but most have been able…
Gold Coast defender Wil Powell has been banned for five matches after using a homophobic slur during the Suns' loss to Brisbane. Powell was…
