Fremantle skipper Nat Fyfe says he couldn’t help but question whether he was on the decline after watching the club’s generation next run rings around him during the pre-season.
Fyfe is still at the peak of his powers, and will start the AFL season as third favourite to win the Brownlow medal behind only Lachie Neale and Patrick Cripps.
But Fyfe was left to ponder his worth when pitted up against some of Fremantle’s emerging midfield stars during the pre-season.
Andrew Brayshaw and Adam Cerra are fast blossoming into bonafide A-grade midfielders, while Caleb Serong took out last year’s Rising Star award following an outstanding debut campaign.
Fyfe is filled with pride seeing his young teammates flourish, but it’s also been a reminder that the passing-of-the-baton is not too far away.
“I had more than one moment over the pre-season where I thought, ‘oh, maybe I’m on the decline here watching these guys fly around’,” Fyfe told AAP.
“There was a pre-season training match where Serong had about six possessions on me in about five minutes, and I hadn’t touched it.
“I decided to go and actually tag him so I could get myself closer to the ball. I thought this could be an official changing of the guard.
“My initial reaction was of self-interest about ‘where does this put me?’
“But later that night I looked back and thought, ‘wow this is awesome, we are really in a position now to have some quality players come and do some damage in this competition’.”
Fremantle’s growing depth in the midfield will allow Fyfe and fellow veteran David Mundy to drift forward more often this season.
Fyfe will captain the Dockers for a fifth straight year, and the 29-year-old can’t help but chuckle when reminded of the generational gap between he and his younger teammates.
“You blink and you’re the fourth oldest at the club,” the two-time Brownlow medallist said.
“Dave Mundy and myself seem to cop a fair bit of flak on the group chat about different things – a lot of the stuff that we completely miss on social media.
“So there is a generational gap there, which in some ways is good because it keeps us young.”
Fremantle’s forward line has been ravaged by injuries over the past two weeks, with Rory Lobb (knee), Michael Walters (hamstring), Bailey Banfield (syndesmosis), Mitch Crowden (calf), and Michael Frederick (calf) all ruled out of Saturday’s clash with Melbourne at the MCG.
The Dockers were dealt a further blow when key forward Josh Treacy, who was pencilled in to make his AFL debut this week, copped a two-match ban from a WAFL practice match.
Melbourne will be without Michael Hibberd (ankle), Jake Melksham (hamstring), and Jack Viney (foot).
© AAP
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.
Round 5 of the AFL provided plenty of action, from big scorelines to upset wins and pressure starting to build on some clubs and coaches already.
Geelong has been crafty and creative in its list management and has quietly assembled a very exciting young group of midfielders and half-forwards.
Brisbane co-captain Lachie Neale will be looking to lead his team to a victory against Melbourne in what will be his 250th AFL game.
Fremantle football general manager Joe Brierty has staunchly defended backman Jordan Clark, following his role in the umpire dissent controversy that dominated headlines following…
Fremantle defender Jordan Clark has told the Dockers the abusive words that saw him penalised for umpire dissent in the dying minutes of their…
If you're a Fremantle fan - and I'm basing this on the social media reaction to what happened on Saturday afternoon at the Adelaide…
