AFL round 9 Fremantle v Collingwood: All the news, fallout and analysis from the Magpies’ 14-point victory

Premiership heroes left home, on the road off a five-day break. No worries for Craig McRae’s Magpies, but it wasn’t a perfect night in Perth with one star knocked out with a nasty concussion.

Tyler Lewis and Dan Batten

4 min read

May 9, 2025 - 12:25AM

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Undermanned yet unaffected.

Collingwood shrugged off the absence of 948 games worth of experience and its best player being well-held to overcome Fremantle in Perth off a five-day break.

The Magpies left Scott Pendlebury, Jordan De Goey, Brayden Maynard and Brody Mihocek in Melbourne after their thrilling encounter with Geelong last Saturday.

In spite of those missing and an unusually quiet night from Nick Daicos, Collingwood still left the west with a 14-point victory over the Dockers.

The Pies picked up a big win in Perth. Picture: Daniel Carson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

The Magpies played free-flowing and exciting football which benefited electric duo Jamie Elliott and Bobby Hill.

Elliott booted six goals and Hill three to steer the Magpies to their seventh win of the season.

STOP THE GAME

Collingwood captain Darcy Moore believes the game should have been stopped after Lachie Schultz’ ugly concussion in the final term, saying the incident was “rattling to see”.

Schultz forced a turnover with a crunching tackle on Fremantle defender Jordan Clark, whose arm accidentally went into the head of the Magpies forward.

The dazed former Docker tried to get to his feet and fell to the ground, before he then ran to the bench with trainers by his side.

Moore was quick to address the incident on Fox Footy after the win, lauding Schultz’ courage and his side for getting the job down after seeing Schultz go down.

“First thing’s first, when you see an incident like Lachie Schultz, just competing so hard, it is just so rattling to see,” Moore said.

Moore describes 'rattling' Schultz scene

Schultz struggled to get off the ground after the incident.. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

“And it is a reminder to everyone watching at home, everyone watching at the stadium, the risks that the guys take and what they are prepared to do.

“We love ‘Shooter’, he does those things week in, week out and it is pretty rattling.

“To see when the game is on the line, to have one of your heart and soul players experience a concussion like that.

“To be able to brush that off in a sense and then deliver on the road with a short turnaround, it I suppose sums up our group at the moment.”

Moore was also bemused that the play continued after the blow.

“We were pretty concerned at how severe it looked, how disorientated he looked, and players from both teams sort of thought the game should have been stopped for 20 seconds to let him off the ground. Obviously a lot of the Freo guys were getting to Lachie as well,” Moore said.

Lachie Schultz is knocked out

“That was really our first concern because of just how nasty it looked.

“He was right in front of me so I could see how much he struggled walking and it was a set shot anyway, it felt like it was right in that moment.

“Clearly it only happens when it is near the play. It felt like out here at the moment that when someone is in a state like that and we are still running around chasing the footy, it didn’t feel right.”

UH OH, BEAU

The terrific tackler could be in trouble.

Collingwood pressure machine Beau McCreery could face a stint on the sidelines for his dangerous tackle on Karl Worner.

McCreery did exactly what the AFL doesn’t want players to do: pin the arms and dump their opponent into the ground.

Worner’s head made contact with the Optus Stadium turf but he promisingly bounced up.

A free kick for a dangerous tackle here, should Beau McCreery be worried?

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PEARCE’S FITTING TRIBUTE

Fremantle captain Alex Pearce paid an emotional tribute to his late mate Cam McCarthy in a rare goal celebration.

This round marks a year since McCarthy’s tragic death.

Pearce charged up the ground into unfamiliar territory, collected a handball receive and banged through a long-range goal.

He kissed a message written on his wrist and stuck his hand in the air to honour McCarthy.

Alex Pearce provided a rare highlight for the home side. Picture: Janelle St Pierre/AFL Photos via Getty Images

KRYPTONITE FOUND?

Watch it. Study it. Mimic it.

Corey Wagner’s vision will be across every AFL coach’s desk this week after he completed the seemingly impossible on Collingwood jet Nick Daicos

Daicos was still searching for his first possession of the game with six minutes left in the opening term.

Wagner engaged with Daicos at every opportunity in the first quarter and restricted him to four disposals at 50 per cent efficiency.

Daicos received work on his hip and lower back region during the second quarter but remained in the game.

Sean Darcy was subbed out. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

THE BIG MAN DILEMMA

The Luke Jackson-Sean Darcy will move further under the microscope after the former heavily outplayed the latter.

Jackson started the game in the middle and was involved in each of the Dockers’ first four scores.

Darcy took the third centre bounce of the game and immediately gave a free kick away.

Darcy was later substituted out of the match after receiving treatment on his left knee during the third quarter.

The chemistry between the two has been watched closely since Jackson’s trade home and heightened over pre-season after reports he was open to exploring a move back.