Zac Dawson the key to Fremantle's plan for world domination

SPECIAL: MALIGNED defender Zac Dawson can be revealed as the on-field general who directs Fremantle's revolutionary game plan.

Zac Dawson

THEY'D have bet London to a brick that Zac Dawson would see out the season when Anthony Rocca and Nathan Thompson rag-dolled him in 2006.

Belted and belittled, the flagpole skinny Hawthorn full-back was about as far removed from a defensive kingpin as you could possibly imagine, directly conceding 14 goals in two inauspicious close-up glimpses at the game's power forwards.

But two clubs later, here he stands.

Thrown a lifeline by St Kilda in 2009, Dawson learnt Ross Lyon's defensive-based system quickly and became a convert, realising that brains can beat brawn.

By the time he followed his coach across the Nullarbor last year, not only was he a disciple, he'd become a fully-fledged preacher.

Dawson now has his own flock - and they're zealots.

Zac Dawson

INSIDE LYON'S LAIR

LYON'S forward press isn't new, although the effectiveness of the 2013 Dockers in employing it might have reached new heights.

Exclusive Herald Sun statistics earlier this week revealed Fremantle is coming off the second best defensive month - conceding just 43.5 points per match - since 1966.

But it's no longer simply a clamp with successive lines pushing forward to block opposition exit points.

History against Freo, Cat premierships

Freo employs a theory whereby its key defenders, led by Dawson, call their own shots to marshall as many troops to what they've termed the "decisive contest before score'' as the ball advances.

Dawson or full-back Luke McPharlin, the chief voices in the Freo wall, analyse where they think the most likely contest will occur before their opponents have a shot at goal if the attack advances.

They call it early, then urge the relevant backman - regularly Michael Johnson - to rush off his forward to help at this contest, effectively putting all their eggs in this defensive basket.

Michael Johnson

It leaves their direct opponents free ahead of the ball, but by outnumbering the next target by at least one, preferably two, it maximises the Dockers' chances of repelling the threat.

The plan also calls for Freo to move that contest as far from its full-back line as possible so that the turnover is turned into an inside 50 as soon as possible - and if the plan backfires, there's potentially time to regroup.

LYON'S LIEUTENANTS

WHAT makes Lyon's theory achievable is complete buy-in from his team.

At its most basic level, it's an all-ground defence that is only as strong as its weakest link.

Even if the ball advances, Freo's backmen are becoming increasingly used to seeing "dirty ball'' come their way - often wayward passes made under pressure.

The Dockers want to reduce their exposure to one-on-one contests around the ground and are more than happy to create a stoppage to reset.

Which is again where Dawson and his disciples come into their own.

Up and down the ground, the Dockers have key voices keeping their teammates in place in the defensive grid.

Dawson and McPharlin are the chief backline organisers, Ryan Crowley and the absent David Mundy are very vocal in the midfield, while the vastly under-rated Matt DeBoer has become a general up forward.

Matt de Boer

Crowley, in the same vein as Dawson, is another who has thrived in not only the discipline and structure Lyon's system provides, but also in the value it puts on personal responsibility.

No.15 in purple has polarised the footy world with his rugged tagging tactics, but his attention to detail in preparation typifies the effort involved in making the system work.

Former Freo captain Peter Bell said this week that Crowley, as others, had become so efficient and precise in his pre-game video work that he has gone much further than simply analysing his own opponent.

"Ryan would wear the tapes out he'd watch 'em that much,'' Bell said, only half-joking.

Brent Harvey

"What he does is typical of how much they've all taken Ross's system to heart. Ryan would start by watching the guy he's going to run with, then he'd watch that much that he'd be able to pick out structures the other team is setting up.

"What he then does is alert all the other guys to set plays that he recognises by the way they set up at stoppages.

"He's then one of those guys that makes it all come together on game day.''

THE NEW PURPLE

BELL was the man when the Dockers had their first faint flirtations with expectation when he twice led them to the finals in 2003 and 2006.

And as much as it pains him to hear the suggestion his team had a "soft underbelly'' when it came to crunch matches, he knows it's true.

How Ablett went from great to unstoppable

But he's equally as forthright in his expectations and belief in the present group, which can stamp itself a legitimate flag contender tonight.

"The thing this group has is belief,'' Bell said.

"Belief in the system they're playing and belief in each other that they'll stick to it.

"Perhaps the best thing I can say confidently now that no Fremantle fan has been able to previously is that at very worst, they'll be competitive in every game.

Joel Corey

"Deep down, when we were seriously challenged in my time, there was a lack of self-belief ... that was probably our Achilles heel.

"But right now, these guys believe in the work they've done and what they're doing - it's a strong force in how a team progresses.''

He said former coach Mark Harvey - "he was great for the club and I have a good relationship with him personally and professionally'' - had been important in the Dockers' growth.

But Lyon's arrival and game plan had been critical junctures in the young club's development.

"It's an absolutely key moment in Freo's history, no doubt.

"They're playing for him and they've really developed their own confidence as they've seen how his system can work.

Ross Lyon

"They've actually had quite a few blokes down at times this year ... but what's fundamental to it is that names don't seem to mean much, it's the system.

"It's clinical what they're doing right now. Really impressive.

"I was one who questioned their depth when these injuries hit, but they've made me look a bit foolish.

"Put it this way, I think they're undersold in the eastern states.''

That might change tonight.