Fremantle have named an unchanged line-up for the first time in 2023 for Saturday’s clash with Sydney at the SCG.
The same starting 22 that defeated Hawthorn by 69-points last Saturday night will start the game against the Swans, while Nat Fyfe will once again be the substitute.
Fremantle’s three emergencies will be Will Brodie, Sam Sturt and defender Josh Draper, who is yet to make his AFL debut.
Fremantle haven’t played at the SCG since 2018 and 10 of the selected 22 are yet to play at the ground in Jye Amiss, Neil Erasmus, Michael Frederick, Nathan O’Driscoll, Lachie Schultz, Caleb Serong, Sam Switkowski, Josh Treacy, Brandon Walker and Hayden Young.
A further five players have only played there once in Bailey Banfield, Andrew Brayshaw, Sean Darcy, Ethan Hughes and Alex Pearce.
Fremantle will spend Friday familiarising themselves with the ground at captain’s run, and Senior Coach Justin Longmuir said the ground’s unique dimensions will come into play.
“After you drive out of a centre bounce, you can get a deep entry,” Longmuir said
“It becomes a bit more of a front half/back half game. We need to be able to lock the ball in our front half and we need to be able to buffer Sydney’s pressure in our back half.
“Owning the corridor is something we try and do all the time, so that won’t change.”
Both teams sit outside the top eight with three wins from eight rounds, with Sydney in 11th ahead of Fremantle in 12th on percentage.
Bouncedown for the clash is at 1.45pm EST (11.45am WST) and will be broadcast live into WA on Channel 7, Fox Footy and can be streamed on Kayo.
TEAM v SYDNEY
B: Brennan Cox, Alex Pearce, Hayden Young
HB: Brandon Walker, Luke Ryan, Jordan Clark
C: James Aish, Caleb Serong, Nathan O’Driscoll
HF: Michael Walters, Luke Jackson, Josh Treacy
F: Sam Switkowski, Jye Amiss, Lachie Schultz
R/Fol: Sean Darcy, Andrew Brayshaw, Jaeger O’Meara
I: Bailey Banfield, Michael Frederick, Neil Erasmus, Ethan Hughes
S: Nat Fyfe
E: Will Brodie, Josh Draper, Sam Sturt
The AFL's hardest kick
Unveiling Fremantle's 2023 Indigenous jumper
Plans for Papley
