Cam McCarthy’s five-goal haul may have grabbed the headlines following Fremantle’s 82-point win against North Melbourne on Sunday at Optus Stadium, but the tall forward feels the whole team delivered in a big way on the day.
McCarthy said he could feel the team gain confidence as Freo steadily added to their lead.
“I think the whole group really built throughout the day,” McCarthy said.
“We had a really good first quarter, I think we all got confidence out of that and I think our pressure was unreal.
“Our backmen were sensational, they were up real high in defence all day and our mids just got to work, it makes it really easy for us forward line players when the ball is coming in as well as it is.”
McCarthy said it all started with the Fremantle’s backline, spearheaded by Joel Hamling and Alex Pearce, who helped prevent North key forward Ben Brown from taking a mark all game.
“They’ve got a good chemistry down there, ‘Hammer’ (Hamling) and ‘Moose’ (Pearce) are the generals and we’ve got Luke Ryan and Ethan Hughes rolling off,” McCarthy said.
“It really gives us the opportunity to see what’s happening and take off on the lead.”
McCarthy said the forwards enjoyed silver service from the midfield throughout the game.
“It was special, it’s pretty easy as a forward when you can run, get a split and they just hit you on the chest,” McCarthy said.
“We have a quality group, good ball users. It’s only one game so we’ll look to build on this.
“The whole team’s put in a real hard summer so it’s nice to get that reward.”
McCarthy said there was a lot more to debutant Lachie Schultz’s performance than his two goals and 17 disposals.
“I think Lachie was unreal today in his first game,” McCarthy said.
“He brought the pressure, he’s a real tough nut and I think everyone played their role today, which was great.”
