Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
AAP
AAP
Justin Chadwick

Swans crush mourning Dockers on day of sadness

Luke Jackson and Hayden Young leave the field after a day of sadness for the mourning Dockers. (Richard Wainwright/AAP PHOTOS)

Fremantle players have been left in tears as they ended a day of mourning with a 48-point AFL loss to Sydney at Optus Stadium.

Will Hayward kicked four goals and Isaac Heeney tallied 28 disposals and eight clearances on Friday as Sydney soared a game clear on top of the ladder with the 13.9 (87) to 4.15 (39) win.

Fremantle players were left devastated when news of Cam McCarthy's death at the age of 29 broke on Friday morning.

A total of 11 Dockers players who took to the field on Friday night were former teammates of McCarthy, who played 49 games for the Dockers between 2017-2020.

Luke Jackson and Brodie Grundy in a ruck contest.
Luke Jackson's ruck battle with Brodie Grundy was an engrossing affair. (Richard Wainwright/AAP PHOTOS)

Fremantle veterans Nat Fyfe and Alex Pearce had tears in their eyes as both teams paid tribute to McCarthy in an emotional moment before the match in front of 46,198 fans.

After the match, Fyfe and Pearce walked over to the goalsquare and laid down flowers for Pearce.

"I had a year coaching Cam. Amazing human. He had an ability to put a smile on everyone's face," Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir said after the match.

"He was fun-loving, great to be around. I know it's been a really tough 24 hours for Cam's friends, Cam's family and the Freo family.

"Some of our players have done it tough and I was really proud of the way they were able to go out there and compete tonight, given the difficulties of the last 24 hours."

Sydney coach John Longmire also paid his respects.

"I just want to acknowledge how heartbroken a lot of people are today in the football community and particularly the Perth footy community and in Fremantle," Longmire said.

Fremantle were their own worst enemies during the match with fluffed shots on goal and horror turnovers.

The halftime scoreboard told the story of the contest - Sydney kicking 9.0 (54) to Fremantle's 1.8 (14).

Seven of Sydney's nine first-half goals came from Fremantle turnovers, including five in a horror second term for the Dockers.

Fremantle's goalkicking was simply horrible.

Patrick Voss missed the opening two shots of the game, while Jye Amiss sprayed a set shot and kicked another snap out of bounds.

Fyfe's shot on the run faded, while Luke Jackson and Andrew Brayshaw were also off target.

In contrast, Sydney made the most of their opportunities, with Chad Warner, Will Hayward and Joel Amartey kicking two goals each in the first half to give the visitors a 40-point lead at the major break.

Sydney's tackling was a feature, with Fyfe caught holding the ball three times in the first quarter alone.

The Swans' first miss of the match didn't arrive until the four-minute mark of the third quarter, when Hayward's 50m set shot faded.

But the damage had already been well and truly done by that stage, with Fremantle's 1.5 in the third quarter further hampering their cause.

Amiss had been in the headlines all week after Dockers coach Justin Longmuir expressed his disgust at the illegal treatment the spearhead had been receiving this season.

The 20-year-old barely got a sniff all night against the Swans, finishing with 0.1 from six disposals.

Sydney also unlocked a tactic that other teams will no doubt follow - tagging defender Jordan Clark.

James Jordon did an excellent shutdown role on the rebounding defender, limiting Clark to 16 disposals.

Clark's turnover in the second quarter also led to a Sydney goal.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.