Fremantle didn’t bring the required intent in their 48-point loss to Collingwood on Friday night, according to captain David Mundy.

Mundy was quick to take blame for his involvement in what he called a “bitterly disappointing effort”, and said Freo’s midfield didn’t put themselves in a winning position early in the game. 

“Clearly right from the get go we didn’t come out and compete strongly enough as an entire group,” Mundy said.

“In the midfield we were beaten early, which put pressure on our backs and starved our forwards of opportunity. 

“As part of the midfield group I’ll put my hand up as part of that." 

Despite Collingwood’s midfield getting on top early and the Magpies winning the inside 50 count 65 to 37, Mundy said he was pleased with the performance of Freo’s key defenders as they faced constant pressure throughout the game.

“Sam (Collins) and Zac (Dawson), I thought they played well and competed fiercely,” he said.

“The midfield certainly didn’t help them out, Collingwood had a lot of the ball, and had something like 230 kicks, which is ridiculous.

“It was always going to be tough for them to repel that many entries.”

Talking points after Collingwood loss

Collingwood won the clearance count 36 to 30 and contested football 154 to 138 on Friday night, and Mundy said it was their tenacity around the stoppages that proved to be the difference.

“They were really fierce with their attack on the ball and the man with the ball, so their pressure really forced us into some poor turnovers,” he said.

“We saw tonight that we were smashed from the start, and baring a couple of guys, we really lost the weight of numbers in our effort and with that discrepancy you can’t win AFL football.”