Senior coach Justin Longmuir should be in the conversation for the 2020 coach of the year after an impressive first year in the role, according to SEN’s Garry Lyon and Tim Watson.

Lyon highlighted the impressive performances of Freo’s backline, which has been under an injury cloud with the likes of Joel Hamling, Alex Pearce and Griffin Logue out for the season.

“The Swans only kicked two goals on the weekend, but I think it says more about the other team to be honest. They’re on the right path,” Lyon said on SEN breakfast on Monday.

“Justin Longmuir, he’s not the coach of the year, but he would be in the conversation I think.”

Watson said Fremantle’s cohesiveness under Longmuir is even more impressive, considering most of Longmuir’s tenure at Fremantle has been during the AFL’s Covid-19 restrictions.

“He’s been able to do things that other coaches haven’t been necessarily able to do,” Watson said.

“The imprint that he has been able to give his team in a short space of time with all the things we’ve had to deal with given COVID-19, he’s been able to really build something and it’s solid.

“Each game that they play in, even though they don’t win every game, they’re in every game because of the way they play.

“He’s done a great job organising that group.”

Lyon added that captain Nat Fyfe has continued to impress. 

“I was watching a fair bit of that Sydney and Fremantle game and as I was watching I was thinking god, Nathan Fyfe might still be the best player in the competition,” Lyon said. 

“Some of the stuff he did in that game, it’s just mind-blowing.

“I’ve said this many times, he’s won two Brownlow Medals, he could end up with four, that’s how good he is.

“I know he’s missed a fair bit of footy and he’s played forward a bit, but his numbers are just compelling and things he does, I think we shrug our shoulders a little bit and just say that’s Fyfe, he’s a freak.”