Fremantle captain Alex Pearce has given a fascinating insight into his leadership, and what changes he made heading into the 2024 season.

Pearce has been one of the premier captains and key defenders in the league this year, but it wasn't always smooth sailing as the 29-year-old revealed the challenges and adjustments he made to his leadership style over the off-season. 

“When I came in, I always wanted to be authentic and not be anyone else, it just took me a little bit of time to be able to trust myself,” Pearce said on SEN WA.

“Just taking a little bit of pressure off myself has been one thing that has allowed me to be really confident, and I think when you are playing confident, you’re not trying too hard, and it makes you a better player and a better leader.

“I’ve continued to have the same support throughout the leadership group which last year was young and new.

“My health has been a little bit better this year, it’s been nice to be on the track a little bit more.

“All of these things go into the melting pot a little bit.”

After a disappointing 2023 season that saw Fremantle finish 14th on the AFL ladder after making a semi-final the year prior, Pearce conceded that he was aware of the external noise around his captaincy and performance.

“I was aware of all the noise around me last year,  I’m often my biggest critic and I probably wasn’t playing up to the level that I like,” Pearce said.

“I think one thing that got me in a little bit of trouble last year was putting a bit too much pressure on myself wanting to be everything, do everything for everyone, and when you start the year poorly like we did it made that really tough.

“This year things have felt a bit more comfortable, I’ve felt a bit more settled in the role and I’ve had some time to become accustomed to things.”

Pearce believes a trip to the United States with other leaders of the Club and senior coach Justin Longmuir was one of the contributors that has seen Pearce become one of the competition's best leaders and key defenders this year.

The Fremantle captain also mentioned he had put his studies on hold for a period of the year to focus more on his leadership.

“I went on a trip with a few of the leaders and JL (Justin Longmuir) last year to the United States and we went through some other professional sporting organisations; NFL, NBA, College Football,” Pearce said.

“It was a good experience and at that time I was reflecting quite a bit on the season and seeing the really high performers, high success environments around the world, it sort of put things into perspective about what we’re doing.

“We’re trying to be the best in the world at our craft and it potentially made me reassess and prioritise a few different things.

“I’ve taken off university for this trimester to give myself a bit of extra mental space and capacity.”