OH HOW the mighty have fallen — and oh how the mighty could fall even further.

After Round 9 last season, Fremantle was dubbed premiership favourites. Its gutsy 11-point win over Adelaide — a game highlighted by the infamous Nat Fyfe-Patrick Dangerfield midfield battle — saw it stand alone on top of the ladder with a flawless 9-0 record and a percentage of 151.6.

What a difference a year makes.

A preliminary final loss, a host of ill-timed injuries and nine straight losses to start this year has seen the Dockers fall, remarkably, to the bottom of the ladder with a 0-9 record and percentage of 68.5.

From the peak of the summit to sea level of the valley, the Dockers’ current predicament is in stark contrast to the one it was in 12 month ago.

But this season mightn’t be Fremantle fans’ biggest concern.

When you pick the Dockers’ list apart and forecast what it might look like in two years’ time under Ross Lyon, it’s concerning reading.

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The Dockers could have a serious talent chasm, as the current group of players aged under 30 on its list mightn’t fill supporters with great confidence.

To fill list holes, clubs have to give up talent to pick up talent. But in reality, would any Freo players at the moment appeal to opposition clubs?

The 12-month drop has been unexpected and dramatic. But the next drop could be even greater.

THE INCREDIBLE FORM, LADDER DROP

After recording 15, 18, 16 and 17 wins over the previous four home and away seasons, most pundits predicted Fremantle would again finish in the top eight this year.

And with a best 22 that looks so good on paper, many had Fremantle making top four, potentially challenging for that elusive maiden premiership.

Camera Icon Fremantle’s best 22 on paper for the 2016 AFL season. Credit: FOX SPORTS

Therefore the Dockers’ fall from grace this season, for most, has come out of nowhere — except Brad “The Oracle” Johnson, who predicted they wouldn’t play finals this year and next.

The Dockers dominated the start of the 2015 AFL season, shooting up to flag favouritism after Round 9 with a defence-focused gameplan. It was an approach based on restricting the opposition from scoring and making the most of its biggest strength: A dominant on-ball brigade.

Fremantle had outstanding defensive mechanisms, but also demonstrated the benefits of dominating possession. After all, it’s pretty hard to score when your opponents have the footy all the time. It was ranked among the top two teams for disposal, contested possession and uncontested possession differential after Round 9.

Across the first nine rounds of 2016, however, the Dockers’ opponents have had much more of the ball, as the below numbers courtesy of Champion Data show.

Camera Icon Freo’s fall in 2016. Credit: FOX SPORTS

The Dockers have also taken a dive in uncontested possession differential (second to 17th), average marks (first to 16th) and goals per inside 50 (second to 16th).

So why the sudden drop down these statistical ladders and the ladder that matters most?

Ill-timed injuries to some of the club’s most important players, especially in the midfield, can’t be underestimated.

None have been more influential than Fyfe — last year’s Brownlow Medallist and the best player in the competition. He played the first five games of the season — and clearly would’ve been leading his side’s best and fairest award — but complications to the broken leg he suffered last year has sidelined him for the rest of the 2016 season.

Also, Aaron Sandilands has played just two games and new skipper David Mundy has managed just six. Add those two absent guns to Fyfe and that’s 75 per cent of Fremantle’s first-choice on-ball brigade unavailable. And when you consider how heavily the Dockers relied upon that trio to launch scores from clearances last year, you couldn’t have picked three more crucial outs.

Sandilands’ exclusion has been critical from a numbers perspective. With the big man missing seven of a possible nine games, the Dockers have gone from first to 12th for hitouts-to-advantage differential and first to 14th for scores from stoppages differential compared to the first nine rounds of last season.

The Dockers have also been stretched down back. Luke McPharlin has retired, Michael Johnson, the club’s best defender, has missed most of the season due to soft tissue injuries and Alex Silvagni has also had calf and concussion problems.

Then there’s Harley Bennell — the high-profile 2015 recruit Fremantle sacrificed a first-round pick for — who won’t play a game this season due to a mysterious calf injury. He was supposed to be the final piece in Freo’s premiership puzzle. Now he’s just the puzzle.

The array of injuries has exposed Fremantle’s underbelly. And it hasn’t been pretty.

“Ross has talked about re-blocking and re-wiring, but at this stage I think he’s ripped off some of the sheeting and he hasn’t liked what he’s seen,” Brownlow Medallist Gerard Healy told Fox Footy’s On The Couch.

IN TWO YEARS TIME

This is where it gets grim for Dockers fans.

It will be fascinating to see how the club approaches the next three to four years, considering its list predicament.

The Dockers currently have eight players aged over 30 who are either unlikely to be or definitively won’t be at the club in two years time.

Camera Icon The Fremantle players who’ll be over 32 in 2018. Credit: FOX SPORTS

Of that list of eight, Mundy is probably the one player you could say with confidence will still be there.

That list of eight also makes up the majority of Fremantle’s best 22 this season. So come 2018, there are some gaping holes.

Camera Icon Fremantle’s best 22 in 2018 without players aged over 32. Credit: FOX SPORTS

Then you have to ask: Will Michael Barlow still be there? Can the club afford to persist with Zac Clarke? Will role players like Nick Suban, Clancee Pearce and Matt de Boer be beneficial in Freo’s next tilt for the flag?

The greater concern, though, could be the Dockers’ lack of young talent.

The Dockers will have great age depth in 2018. They’ll have a heavy volume of players aged 25 to 29, as well as up to a dozen players 24 and under.

But is the depth of talent there? Fox Footy Analyst David King doesn’t believe so.

“When you look at their list now in totality, where’s the next wave of talent coming from? Have they got enough talent there?” King asked.

Camera Icon Fremantle’s list in 2018. Credit: FOX SPORTS

Of the 12 players in that 25 to 29 age bracket, you could argue Fyfe and Michael Walters are the only two players who’ll be genuine A-graders.

Stephen Hill and Chris Mayne are supremely talented and have the potential, but their inconsistent output has frustrated Freo fans. Bennell, too, remains a great unknown.

And unless they produced a sudden form spike, it’s hard to see any of De Boer, Suban, Clarke, Clancee Pearce and Cam Sutcliffe reaching the elite category.

The 25 and under age group also looks thin for talent.

There are three players who could be A-graders by 2018. Lachie Neale is already a star of the competition, ranking first and second respectively for average disposals and contested possessions this season. There are also big wraps on on-baller Lachie Weller and full-back Alex Pearce — the latter broke his leg on the weekend and will miss the rest of 2016.

But for the likes of Matt Taberner, Tom Sheridan and Hayden Crozier, as well as a host of youngsters who have played less than five AFL games to date, the jury is still out.

Camera Icon Stephen Hill could offer rival clubs currency. Credit: News Corp Australia, Daniel Wilkins

“Taberner isn’t going to be a Pavlich in terms of a big numbers forward,” Brisbane great Jonathan Brown told On The Couch. “A good player, but I don’t think he’s going to be a star that’s going to kick you five or six goals.”

WHERE TO NOW?

If the Dockers want to re-enter the premiership race as soon as possible, they’ll have to be aggressive at the trade table.

But that’s easier said than done.

Geography has always been a major issue for the Dockers come the exchange period. They’ve missed out on an array of players over the years, including Travis Cloke, Mitch Clark and James Frawley.

But once they entice the player, working out a trade with his club in a few years time will be tough, as they’ll need to offer something to get something. And, honestly, how many Freo players genuinely appeal to rival clubs at the moment?

“We saw Melbourne do some quality things with their draft selections over the past couple of years, but in terms of (Fremantle’s) tradeable commodities, is Stephen Hill the only one you can front to the market? King asked.

“He’s played 160-odd games. He’d be ripe for a contender to go after. I know he’s had a good career, he’s been a little bit of a tease at times. Is he the only one?”

Hawthorn great Jason Dunstall said the Dockers would have to give up a player of Hill’s ilk — but there aren’t many to choose from.

“There aren’t many in that category, I think, that have genuine currency that others are going to give them the right currency for,” Dunstall told Fox Footy.

Cameron McCarthy would undoubtedly be a handy and timely inclusion into Fremantle’s forward line.

Healy said McCarthy, who had sought a trade from the GWS Giants to Fremantle last year and has stayed back in Perth to deal with life issues this year, could fill the void to be left by Matthew Pavlich.

Camera Icon Fremantle captain David Mundy has played just six games for the Dockers in 2016. Credit: News Corp Australia, Nikki Davis-Jones

“We’re basing this on a very small sample for a young kid, but he looks a really exciting talent,” Healy said.

“He’s got some issues on the field, he’s got some issues off the field that he needs to address. (But) he would be one potential A-grader to stick back in their side if they can land him.

“I don’t think they’ll want to give up a first-round pick for him full-stop, but they may have to compete with the West Coast Eagles, who all of a sudden would be foolish not to be in the reckoning.”

But McCarthy is just one player.

With so many of the Dockers’ best and most important players nearing the end of their careers, the future doesn’t look bright.

“How long before Ross Lyon can coach this side into a finals campaign? I think 2017 is a genuine chance, but longer term I think they’re heading for the slippery slide,” Healy said.

Dunstall added: “When you really look underneath what looks to be a glossy veneer, I don’t know if there’s enough substance there.”