Fremantle forward Josh Treacy wants to take on the responsibility for covering the loss of Rory Lobb in 2023 and bounce back from an injury-ravaged second season that saw him stall as a promising young key target.
Treacy played 15 games in 2021 and was on track to establish himself as a regular member of Freo's attack, with the 20-year-old's aggressive style and long kicking looming as assets.
A pre-season groin injury leading into 2022 put him on the back foot, however, before injuries to both ankles and glandular fever restricted the Cohuna product to just four games, with the last of those coming in round nine.
Refreshed over the summer and benefiting from a strong running program, Treacy said he wanted to be among the forwards who covered the loss of Lobb, who led the team with 36 goals last year.
"I feel a little bit of that responsibility. It leaves a great hole, not only as a player but as a person too. He was a great mentor and someone I worked really closely with," Treacy told AFL.com.au.
"I'm building connections with Jye (Amiss) and 'Tabs' (Matt Taberner) and Josh (Corbett) so we can have a successful year as a forward unit regardless of who's down there kicking goals. That's what we're all looking for."
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Fremantle has built a forward line with plenty of options for 2023, but there is uncertainty around which of those players will step up and be the productive goalkicking sidekick for Taberner.
The Dockers will be hoping young talls like Amiss and Treacy make that leap, while Gold Coast recruit Corbett and medium forward Sam Sturt provide other versatile options in attack. Draftee Tom Emmett, 21, was recruited as a player who could step in quickly.
The Dockers' preferred structure also looks likely to include captain Nat Fyfe at times, with ruck duo Sean Darcy and Luke Jackson rotating to be regular targets forward of centre and goalkicking threats.
Still, the opportunity is there for Treacy, who has enjoyed a much more productive summer than he did 12 months ago when groin issues restricted him to jogging laps for long periods of the pre-season.
It was the first hurdle in a year the hulking forward described as "unlucky", with the Dockers stripping his program right back to avoid more damage.
"It was just too risky for me to continue doing what I was doing, so we had to start from square one again, which really put me behind the eight ball with a lot of things," Treacy said.
"[The year] was unlucky to an extent I think. I missed 10 weeks during the pre-season … hurt both ankles during the year and missed weeks, and got glandular fever towards the back end of the year and missed six weeks.
"I was just missing games of footy at the wrong time unfortunately, but I've recovered from everything now and feeling really good."
Coach Justin Longmuir this week highlighted Treacy as a player capable of taking the next step in a forward line that would see 12 players battling for six spots this pre-season.
"One of the guys that started the pre-season really well and returned from Christmas is Josh Treacy," Longmuir told SEN WA.
"Sometimes we forget how young is, he only just turned 20. He probably plays a bit more maturely and we think he's a little bit older even internally.
"He's really improved his fitness and he's creating some really good opportunities for himself and his teammates at training. He's the one that looks like he's taking another step."
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