In: Jesse Hogan (Melbourne), Rory Lobb (GWS), Reece Conca (Richmond), Travis Colyer (Essendon), picks 14, 31, 43, 65,

Out: Lachie Neale (Brisbane), pick 6, 2019 third-round pick, 2019 fourth-round pick.

Fremantle wore more criticism than most this past week, but emerged from the trade period having filled the most gaping hole on their list, extended their midfield depth and made their way back into a draft they had all but traded out of last year.

That all adds up to more than one feather in the cap of new football operations manager Peter Bell and his front-office colleagues Steve Rosich and David Walls.

In Jesse Hogan and Rory Lobb, the Dockers have secured much-needed firepower inside 50. They may have paid a fair bit for them, but it wasn’t as much as Melbourne and GWS were asking, and key forwards don’t grow on trees, so when they’re up for grabs you have to pay for them.

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The impact Hogan and Lobb will have on Fremantle can’t be understated. As much as games are won and lost in the midfield, the fact that the Dockers have lacked a major target since Matthew Pavlich’s retirement hasn’t helped them climb out of the hole they have found themselves in over the past few seasons.

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Michael Walters was the club’s leading goal-kicker this season with 22. He played most of the year in the midfield. That’s embarrassing for the forwards.

Then there’s the efficiency. The Dockers didn’t get it inside 50 all that much this year, they averaged the third fewest entries in the comp, and once they did, they didn’t make the most of the delivery. The team finished the year going at 0.212 goals per inside 50 - ranked 14th in the AFL.

Cam McCarthy averaged the most marks inside 50 (1.6) of any Fremantle forward, followed by Brennan Cox and Hayden Ballantyne. None of those three finished with a goal accuracy greater than 52 per cent.

Hogan and Lobb go a fair way to fixing (pretty much) all of that.

Camera Icon Travis Colyer will add more speed to the Fremantle midfield. Credit: Getty Images

Then there’s Reece Conca, who arrives as a free agent, and Travis Colyer, who arrived in a last-minute trade with Essendon. Neither of those two will set the world on fire, but they bring experience to a side which is full of older players and youth, and are capable of filling roles across almost every line while the side’s young stars like Andy Brayshaw and Adam Cerra are still developing.

The club will also pick in every round of this year’s draft after going into the trade period with very little and it all adds up to a very successful October for the Dockers.