WHEN Justin Longmuir talks about the game style he wants to implement at Fremantle, he talks about balance.

The new coach wants the Dockers to have the right balance of offence and defence, and he wants his players to know when to play safe and when to take risks and back their attacking instincts.

Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir after addressing his players during the Marsh Series win against Carlton. Picture: AFL Photos

After eight seasons of dour, defensive football that have seen the Dockers rank 14th-18th every season for aggregate match scores, the idea of balance is an exciting one at Cockburn.

And after one Marsh Community Series match it is clear that's what we'll see from Freo, with Longmuir unveiling a game style against Carlton that delivered on his summer objectives.

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Copy link Link copied to clipboard Marsh Highlights: Fremantle v Carlton The Dockers and Blues clash in the Marsh Community Series

There is a danger in coming to conclusions from a sample size of one – especially when that one is a pre-season match with superstars on both sides missing.

But there were clear signs against Carlton that the Dockers will play a significantly different style, and that's not going to change going into the regular season.

So, what exactly has changed?

The biggest shift is the Dockers' preference to control the football and take the safe options coming out of defence.

This change resulted in an uplift in kicks (245-191), short kicks (103-56) and uncontested marks (106-58) against the Blues.

In 2019, the Dockers averaged 74.4 short kicks a game, and 73.2 uncontested marks, according to Champion Data, ranking 17th in both categories.

Longmuir's new-look Dockers 2019 avg. v Carlton % change Short kicks 74.4 103 +38.4% Uncontested marks 73.2 106 +44.8%



Short kicks are only recorded if the kick is effective, so if it is ineffective or a 'clanger' it will not be recorded. Therefore, an increased skill level could also play a part in the upswing in short kicks, but we'll get to that later.

The other noticeable shift in game style was the Dockers' willingness to 'bite off' a dangerous option through the corridor when it presented, rather than bomb down the line to gain territory.

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According to recruit James Aish, players have permission to "express yourself, use your skills, take the game on, and just take the most damaging option".

"What we've been training all summer is coming together pretty well," Aish said this week.

"We're just trying to focus on, at times, retention but then backing yourself in … trying to be a bit more attacking when the time is there.

"It's exciting."

Andrew Brayshaw bursts clear of congestion against Carlton. Picture: AFL Photos

Aish joined the Dockers from Collingwood and said a lot of Longmuir's principles were similar after the coach spent two seasons under Magpies' senior coach Nathan Buckley, making his own tweaks.

Where Longmuir has sought to make significant change is with the Dockers' skills after implementing a weekly training session dedicated to skills this pre-season.

There was evidence against the Blues that the Dockers have made ground in this area, and the stats back this up, with Fremantle recording a kick rating of -0.8 per cent, ranked 10th for the opening round of the Marsh Community Series.

They ranked 17th last season with a kick rating of -2.9 per cent.

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Again, we need to see more evidence that the Dockers' skills have improved. Saturday's clash against West Coast will provide a sterner test going into round one.

But a summer of training skills under pressure has clearly made some difference.

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"A lot of the drills are designed around match play and trying to bring as much intensity as you can," Aish said of the Dockers' summer program.

"That's probably the only way you can learn, to try and replicate as much of the game play stuff as you can.

"The guys have really improved. Just sharper decisions and executing more consistently."