Freo’s WAFL Player of the Round, Michie starred with 33 disposals in Peel Thunder’s 19-point win over Subiaco.
Twenty-five of his disposals were effective.
Freo assistant and senior development coach Simon Lloyd said the 21-year-old Victorian was a popular figure around the club who had endured a frustratingly long stint out of football.
“The respect that he’s got from his teammates and the coaching staff for how well he’s held himself during that difficult time is immense,” he said.
“He’s never showed outward frustration, he’s kept the head down and kept working hard.”
Lloyd said the club was extremely heartened by Michie’s form this season.
“One of Viv’s greatest strengths has always been playing the contest in tight and his ability to win those contests,” he said.
“What we’re seeing consistently, week-in week-out, is that when Viv gets the ball in his hands he makes some very good decisions and executes the ball well by foot.”
Lloyd shared his notes from all the Fremantle players who played in the WAFL last weekend.
Midfielders
Viv Michie (PT) – 33 disposals (20 kicks, 13 handballs), 1 goal
Played as an inside mid and we felt he had the better of his direct opponent on the day. He ended up having 25 effective disposals and balanced his game between inside and outside play with four rebounds from defensive 50 and four inside 50s. Viv made some really good decisions through changing the direction of the footy and drawing the opposition to get out of trouble.
Jesse Crichton (PT) – 12 disposals (8 kicks, 4 handballs)
Jesse played midfield and wing and put in a serviceable performance. He got through the game after being out for four weeks. He showed a competitive approach where he had an influence at stoppages with five clearances. As expected, he lacked the long run, which will come as the week’s progress. Defensively, he covered the opposition when he needed to.
Tom Sheridan (PT) – 16 disposals (7 kicks, 9 handballs), 2 goals
Tom played wing with short stints as an inside mid and a forward. We were really pleased that he looked to organise midfielders in stoppages. He was disciplined and his ball use in centering the ball showed composure. He had a lot of the football in the first half and not as much in the second, but Tom is continuing to build his game.
Haiden Schloithe (SF) – 16 disposals (10 kicks, 6 handballs), 6 inside 50, 1 goal
Haiden played inside mid and forward. We were pleased with his offensive transition, where he spread hard, but he has to be careful not to run too far forward ahead of the contest. When he played inside mid early in the game he stayed close to thecontest and got involved. He’s just got to clean up his goal kicking on the run, where he finished with 1.3, and learn to be patient with the timing of his leads.
Defenders
Peter Faulks (PT) – 15 disposals (11 kicks, 4 handballs)
Peter played key back and we felt he beat his opponent, winning the one-on-one contest and he saved a couple of goals with desperate defending, particularly in the second half.
Alex Forster (PT) – 12 disposals (7 kicks, 5 handballs)
Played deep in defence on Subiaco’s talls in the first half, before changing his role in the second half where he worked up the ground on opposition half-forwards. He took a good one-on-one mark through good use of his body. In the fourth quarter, he showed desperate defence around the contested ball. Alex looked to get the ball more in his hands in the second half and use his skills more. His running numbers were much better in the second half.
Alex Howson (RES) (EF) – 13 disposals (9 kicks, 4 handballs)
Alex played key back. The positive was that he competed better in the air at times, where he showed he attempted to body up more often and had a couple of good spoils boundary side. He played one-on-one as instructed; he’s just got to be careful not to be beaten on the hit-up kicks.
Forwards
Matthew Taberner (PT) – 12 disposals (8 kicks, 4 handballs)
Matthew played forward and the strength of his game was his work-rate and resilience. He was consistently an option for his team coming out of defence with strong outlet leads. He marked the ball six times by getting separation on the long lead. He had a really strong fourth quarter where he took four marks, one of those being contested, and had four kicks that influenced the result of thegame. He constantly took the ball at the highest point and we’re very pleased with his development.
Tanner Smith (PT) – 2 disposals (6 kicks, 2 handballs)
Played a mixture of forward and spent some time in the ruck. He showed a good chase and tackle in the third quarter and took a nice mark in the fourth, where he took it at the highest point. As a forward, he needs to keep working on his positioning and constantly present as that tall option down the line.
Josh Mellington (WP) – 16 disposals (13 kicks, 3 handballs), 2 goals
Played high forward and wing on occasions. He ground out a solid second half performance after a flat start, where he showed better positioning to the ball on offensive transition and he lifted his running output. Set up a number of scoring chains between the arcs and kicked a couple of goals himself.
WAFL LEAGUE RESULTS
West Perth 24.8 (152) def East Fremantle 21.3 (129)
Peel Thunder 12.18 (90) def Subiaco 12.9 (81)
Claremont 15.10 (100) def Perth 14.11 (95)
East Perth 18.13 (121) def South Fremantle 14.18 (102)
WAFL RESERVES RESULTS
East Fremantle 15.6 (96) def West Perth 9.11 (65)
