AFL round 8: St Kilda defeats Fremantle by 61 points

Cooper Sharman put on a second-half clinic to launch St Kilda to an impressive win over a Fremantle side dubbed “listless” and “embarrassing”. See the full SuperCoach talking points here.

If footy lovers thought Thursday night’s game between Essendon and North Melbourne was of poor standard, the Saints and Dockers shouted, ‘Hold my beer’, on Friday night to ensure a nightmarish double prime-time stinkfest for the AFL and its broadcasters.

St Kilda won’t be too fussed as they emerged from the spectacle, which opened up a lot more in the final quarter, 61-point winners, 14.10 (94) to 5.3 (33).

But questions over Fremantle’s legitimacy have been raised yet again, following on from their bitterly disappointing losses to Melbourne, Sydney and Geelong this season, as they now join the Saints with a 4-4 record.

The Dockers were held to their equal 10th-lowest score in 665 AFL matches and their first two goals were separated by more than two quarters of play.

Fremantle’s half-time tally of 1.1 (7) was their third-lowest, including a COVID game in 2020, and if it wasn’t for St Kilda forward Cooper Sharman’s theatrics in the third quarter, the game truly would have been banished to the back of the video vault, never to be seen again.

Only five goals combined were kicked in the first half, but Sharman came alive in the third term with three of his own, and he should’ve had four, but missed a straightforward set shot from directly in front just before the siren.

One of Sharman’s majors was a goal-of-the-year contender. While being tackled by Josh Draper on the boundary, Sharman’s right-foot snap from the right forward pocket curled around to perfection and threaded the needle, prompting him to bring out the famous Jason Akermanis shocked celebration.

Jack Steele is mobbed after a fourth-quarter goal.

Sharman also took a pair of high-flying grabs, including a massive pack mark over Fremantle ruckman Sean Darcy at the top of the goal square.

The Saints lost their previous three games by an average of eight goals, and conceded an average of 118 points over that stretch, but they went right back to their defensive best on Friday night.

St Kilda had been particularly disappointing in the middle in their previous two games, losing the clearance and inside-50 battles by a combined 39 and 61 respectively. But they turned things around dramatically against one of the best stoppage teams in the competition in Fremantle, smashing the Dockers in clearances 50-22, centre clearances 13-5, inside 50s 61-34, contested possessions 151-103 and disposals 379-286.

In one of the most utterly insipid and impotent displays, Fremantle managed just one behind in the second term and five forward entries in the third. They weren’t prepared to take the game on and played within themselves while the Saints’ pressure completely blunted their offensive capabilities.

St Kilda put the result beyond doubt with four majors in a row stretching their lead to 45 points early in the final quarter.

Jack Macrae had another stellar performance for St Kilda, racking up 38 disposals (25 contested), 14 clearances and eight tackles, while Callum Wilkie was a defensive general yet again, keeping Josh Treacy scoreless for the first time in 29 games, while registering 24 touches and 14 marks.

Hayden Young injured

YOUNG HURT

Adding insult to injury for Fremantle was the loss of star midfielder Hayden Young in the second quarter with another hamstring injury, after a pair of hamstring injuries in the pre-season delayed his start to the year until Round 5.

MRO CONCERNS?

St Kilda ruckman Rowan Marshall could be cited by the MRO for tripping Fremantle’s Murphy Reid in the second quarter and Dockers small forward Isaiah Dudley could also come under scrutiny for making contact with Liam Stocker’s head while the pair were going for a loose ball in Fremantle’s forward pocket in the second term.

Hugo Garcia responded strongly after being subbed in the first half last round.

GARCIA RESPONDS

St Kilda youngster Hugo Garcia was given a public bake by coach Ross Lyon last week before being subbed out early against Brisbane, but Garcia would’ve done Lyon proud in the second quarter when he ran down Shai Bolton from behind as the Dockers star was running towards goal, ensuring the kick went out on the full. And when Garcia snapped truly deep into the final term, Lyon couldn’t help but smile. The youngster also finished with a career-best 10 tackles.

Cooper Sharman goal

FREO GUNS QUIET

Superstar Freo duo Caleb Serong and Andrew Brayshaw had averaged 30 and 29 disposals respectively a game prior to Friday night, but against the Saints, Serong only had 15 touches and Brayshaw 18.

Originally published as AFL round 8: St Kilda defeats Fremantle by 61 points