Fremantle significantly ramped up their training ahead of the resumption of the 2020 AFL season with a match simulation on Friday morning at Victor George Kailis Oval.

The line-ups showed the depth at Justin Longmuir’s disposal, with round one absentees David Mundy, Blake Acres, Nathan Wilson, Stephen Hill and Jesse Hogan taking part.

The simulation was played over six 12-minute periods and while play was generally allowed to run as normal, the senior coach would occasionally stop play and call for various stoppage situations to test different scenarios.

While Hill was quiet early on the White team, a switch to Purple from the fourth period onwards saw him have a big influence at half back – a great sign of the veteran’s fitness.

Nat Fyfe and Michael Walters spearheaded the Purple midfield and the duo helped their team dominate early until sides were switched up later in the simulation.

There was an intriguing ruck battle with Sean Darcy (Purple) and Lloyd Meek (White) going head to head. Darcy helped give his mids first use and was also impressive in the air with a couple of big contested grabs.

Purple’s defenders helped limit any advance forward from White, with Griffin Logue and Taylin Duman racking up the spoils and intercept marks.

At the other end of the ground, defender Hayden Young showed his talents with a big grab and later hitting Brandon Matera expertly on the wing from a rebound 50.

Young’s run up the ground to spoil what would have otherwise been an easy Rory Lobb mark on the wing earned cheers from his teammates.

Forward Bailey Banfield was prolific up forward for Purple. With the likes of Lobb bringing the ball to ground, Banfield was able to gather and snap four goals in the session.

Banfield’s fourth goal came courtesy of a torpedo out of half back from Wilson. Fyfe pulled down the mark in a pack at half forward, who handed to Lachie Schultz and sent the ball in Banfield’s direction.

While they played on opposite teams, young midfielders Adam Cerra and Caleb Serong both caught the eye. Cerra was particularly dominant in the third and fourth periods as he moved into the midfield and won plenty of the footy.

While Serong played forward at times, he looked calm and composed when in the White midfield, which was often under pressure with Fyfe and Walters firing.

Both Sam Sturt and Stefan Giro played the first half of the session and then joined Matthew Taberner running and sprinting laps on the sidelines as the trio continue to build their fitness as they recover from injury.

Sturt still managed to provide a highlight, marking on the run and slotting a set shot from 50 into the wind that was reminiscent of his first career goal against Essendon.

Midfielder Darcy Tucker worked his way into the game and kicked two goals, including one on the run from outside the 50.

In another positive sign for Freo’s mids, David Mundy played the full session as he switched between the two sides.

Jesse Hogan also ran out the full session, which was highlighted by a quick snap and goal in the fourth period.

The day also saw Cam McCarthy return to training, with the forward warming up with his teammates and running laps.