Fremantle have come a long way in addressing their defensive needs over the off-season, according to defensive assistant coach Michael Prior.
Following the retirement of Luke McPharlin, and suffering key injuries to Michael Johnson and Alex Pearce in 2016, Prior told SportFM’s breakfast program that he feels optimistic with some new faces coming into the mix.
Among Fremantle’s additions are Bulldogs’ premiership defender Joel Hamling via the NAB AFL Trade Period, and top-10 draft pick Griffin Logue from the NAB AFL Draft.
But Fremantle didn’t stop there, adding plenty of depth in both the National and Rookie Drafts.
“The guys we’ve got in (including) Taylin Duman, Luke Ryan and Brennan Cox all play across the backline,” Prior said.
“So we’ve got a number of options down back.”
Michael Prior addresses the defensive group during training
Coming into the club with pick No.8, 18-year-old Griffin Logue has taken to training with the senior side like a duck to water, however Prior stressed that any new recruit needs time to develop.
“Griffin’s been really good since he’s been at the club,” Prior said.
“But I think when you talk about what to teach these players when they come to the club, more emphasis goes into structure and positioning in different scenarios.
“They’re probably not used to that so much at an under 18 or even league level in the WAFL, so we’ve really focused on the positioning, whether from stoppages or general play.
“It’s clear that Griff needs a bit of work in that area, but we’ll work with him on that. Overall we’re really happy and pleased that we have him to our footy club.”
Alongside Hamling and the return of Johnson and Pearce, Prior says the club could also see some of the new draftees make an appearance in 2017.
“With Hamling coming in this year, it’s going to make a real difference to us,” Prior said.
“Hopefully we can get a fit Michael Johnson who is looking good for us already.
“And I really like the look of Logue, he’s come in with a bit of a reputation from playing league footy, so he’s going really well.
“Luke Ryan who plays across half back who is mature age and played for Coburg last year, and did some good things.
“He’s just starting to come back into footy right now after a shoulder injury, so they’re two guys who might stand up for us during the year.”
While Prior is delighted with his defensive stocks, he sees plenty of positives in other areas of the ground, highlighting the presence of one new key forward in Cam McCarthy.
“Cam hasn’t missed a beat since he stepped foot into the footy club,” Prior said.
“He’s done all the training and ran well in the time trials, and he’s really adding something for us up forward.
“He’s not your traditional big bustling full forward, he’s more mobile and kicks the ball really well.”
While Prior stressed that the real results need to come on the field, the club is progressing well on the training track compared to previous years.
“I think we’re training really well. I think we’ve had a great pre-Christmas phase,” Prior said.
“Everything is measurable these days from our sports science guys, and all of our measures indicate we’re up on where we were last year, which is a bonus.”
