Justin Longmuir to coach Fremantle in 2026 and beyond after new, unique agreement
Justin Longmuir’s new deal with Fremantle may seem convoluted, but the unique arrangement couldn’t be more simple, writes Eliza Reilly. However long he lasts is entirely up to him.
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Winning requires no explanation.
Losing accepts no excuses.
When you boil it down, Justin Longmuir’s fate as coach of Fremantle is that simple.
At the end of the 2025 season when his current deal expires, Longmuir will switch from a fixed term deal to an ongoing employee agreement.
The unique arrangement means Longmuir will remain as coach in 2026 and beyond after renegotiating his own employment terms.
The announcement comes almost a year after Longmuir agreed to a one-year contract extension on the eve of the 2024 season, successfully removing the stigma that comes with coaches in their ‘contract year.’
It was seen as a show of some faith. Fremantle think that Longmuir is their guy but the club left itself enough wriggle room just in case he’s not. Some argued it was kicking the can down the road.
If the Dockers were rebuilding or had made finals last year, Longmuir would have been offered a multi-year deal. Instead, club and coach have shown each other mutual respect.
In reality, this new arrangement, while it will look different on paper, was forged in the same furnace of pressure and expectation.
Longmuir was motivated to act by the looming threat of external noise. If the Dockers happened to lose a few games early, the chatter would’ve started. This was a united decision to stop the scuttlebutt and allow the 44-year-old to focus on what’s important – winning games of football.
The expectation for Fremantle to perform is now more than ever as the club prepares to enter the final year of its strategic plan which intends to deliver a maiden premiership by the end of the season.
Longmuir has led the Dockers to finals just once in five years at the helm. He’s undoubtedly under pressure.
But the difference is pundits can’t question your status if you’re an ongoing employee.
From 2026 onwards, every year will in essence be a ‘contract year.’
If Longmuir can lead the Dockers back to finals with a list widely considered to be one of the best in the competition, his employment status won’t matter. If he can’t, then it’s an easy decision.
Longmuir can still be sacked, just like if he was on a fixed contract. Longmuir, who represents himself in contract negotiations, has secured the same termination clause and notice period he has in his current contract.
The caveat is Fremantle now has incentive to keep one eye on the open market and the free agents soon to be or already on offer in the likes of John Longmire and Ken Hinkley. If Longmuir doesn’t perform, there’s no contract optics or supposed loyalty to navigate.
There’s also an ugly precedent of coaches who have agreed to similar arrangements only to lose their jobs or resign long before reaching the ultimate success.
Legendary Western Australian coaching doyen John Todd once said that every coach gets sacked eventually, it’s just a matter of when. Very few get the privilege of retiring on their own terms.
How long Longmuir lasts at the helm is entirely up to him.
NO END DATE: FREO, LONGMUIR AGREE TO CURIOUS EXTENSION
Fremantle chief executive Simon Garlick has stopped short of guaranteeing coach Justin Longmuir’s future beyond 2025 after the club redefined his employment terms.
Longmuir, 44, will switch from a fixed term deal to an ongoing employee agreement when his current deal expires at the end of the season. The sixth-year coach will become a full-time staff member on a rolling agreement that doesn’t include an end date.
The club said on Tuesday morning that the unique arrangement means Longmuir will remain as coach in 2026 and beyond after renegotiating his terms of employment.
Asked if Longmuir’s future was definitely secure when the new agreement begins on November 1, Garlick said that it would depend on the Dockers’ on-field performance.
“Regardless of the contract type, whether it’s a fixed term agreement or an ongoing employment arrangement that we’ve settled on, we’re in a performance-based industry,” Garlick said. “Clearly performance along with a whole host of factors is a critical element of determining decisions that are made.
“From that perspective, we understand that we’re always going to be measured on our performance. That’s not just Justin, that’s the entire club.
“There’s no difference to that if we’re sitting here announcing a three-year fixed term agreement extension or the ongoing employment agreement we’ve made.
“We just don’t have a specified end date that it would naturally come to an end.”
Both club and coach said they were satisfied with the agreement. The discussion wasn’t driven by one party in particular and the new agreement includes a notice period, performance bonuses and mechanisms to protect Fremantle should Longmuir be pursued by opposition clubs.
Garlick said the unusual move is designed to instil faith in Longmuir’s coaching ability and ease the pressure tied up in contract deadlines.
“Our belief in Justin as our senior coach is incredibly strong,” he said. “As we had conversations and talked about what the potential options are for us at the end of the upcoming contract end date, we wanted to not necessarily do what we’ve always done.
“This provides a level of surety and security for our club. We also think we’ve struck a really good balance that allows Justin and the entire football department to zero in and focus on the upcoming season. Internally, it allows us to remove a distraction.
“There’s very little change in relation to the conditions that he was operating under compared to moving forward.”
Longmuir, who represents himself in contract negotiations, has also secured the same termination clause that was in his previous contract, which provides him additional security.
“I kept coming back to my purpose as a coach and person and my purpose in this job,” he said. “Why I do this job is firstly to support my family and secondly, just as importantly, to bring success to the Freo family.
“Throughout those discussions, I kept coming back to those two things and we landed here.
“Hopefully there comes a time we’ve won two or three flags and I can step away, promote someone else and ride off into the sunset. Whether we’re successful or not, I’m happy with this contract.”
The last two coaches to operate under the same agreement were David Noble at North Melbourne and Brendon Bolton at Carlton, both of whom were sacked. Neil Craig also accepted a rolling contract at Adelaide in 2011 after seven years at the helm but resigned within a year.
Garlick was confident that the Dockers could buck that trend.
“We considered and understood that there was precedence,” he said. “I have a high level of confidence that this is going to work.”
Originally published as Justin Longmuir to coach Fremantle in 2026 and beyond after new, unique agreement
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