The Restump Podcast

Was it a simple case of our missed opportunities or did Richmond wind back the clock to their dynastical Richmondy times? A post bye win would’ve been handy for momentum but its not the end of the world. Time to Restump Podcast Saturday’s once bitten twice shy loss to the Tigers.
We can all debate the reasons for the loss and opinioniise our preferred personnel, but we probably just got a reality check of where we’re really at. And other than the missed four points, its not a negative.
Yes, we didn’t take our opportunities but isn’t that a part of a current make-up at any given time? The lack of composure and skill execution, specifically in that final quarter, could be partly attributed to our age and inexperience.
We might have to pass the hat around to help the boys pay for the How To Handle The Ball In Wet Conditions lesson Tim Taranto and Shai Bolton gave us. They were exceptional all night and we simply had no genuine answers for them.
Having said that, our 19-year-old Busseltonian up forward had the velcro hands and took all but one opportunity of his own. His rapid rise to the level he is at is astonishing and we’re pretty much at a point where it’s Nev’s forward line, everyone else give him a chop out and get out of the way.
Meanwhile another rapid rise to prominence, this time in the midfield, the magnificent Matty Johnson made every post a winner and was arguably Freo's best. Mature beyond his years and if Saturday night was indicative of the base which he’ll grow from.... holy Christmas.... sky is the limit.
And speaking about taking your opportunities... Jayden Short took three of them all from beyond the 50 metre arc! I haven’t seen goal kicking like that since.... believe it or not... Rory Lobb kicked 4 against the Dogs for us last year.
Did we experience any repercussions from the week off? We went into the bye with a solid victory which now makes it 15 pre-bye round wins, while the loss on Saturday has us at 8 post-by round wins. So, from 17 byes we have an 88% pre-bye round win record, but the post-bye round we win just 53% of the time.
Whatever the case, the reality is once upon a time in the not-so-distant past, we wouldn’t have gotten anywhere near back in the game from being 6 goals down in dry conditions, let alone in treacherous rain.
We’re a team of kids, we were two and a half years younger and 50 games lighter on average against a rampaging Richmond team consisting of 16 premiership players, and we just fell short through missed opportunities and a lack of composure. Safe to say we’re in super shape.
This is actually a really interesting game to dissect. So, lets put the cap on the pen and get into it on the pod. I can’t guarantee you’ll learn anything but other than 45 minutes of your precious time, what have you got to lose by coming along for the conversation and getting involved?

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Hopefully Jaren was assessed elite in the antagonism and niggle category at the various draft camps! Time to belatedly Restump Podcast the new list additions and catch up on all the latest purple proceedings.
So, with the conclusion of the trade period and drafts and our participation in the preseason supplementary selection period netting Quinton Narkle, the Freo folk list looks all but finalised for 2025.
To be honest, maybe it’s just us, but, with all due respect to what appears a very handy crew of draftees we recruited, the draft wasn’t as interesting or as intriguing this year for us. Don’t get me wrong, we’re very happy to keep adding to the future, but at Fremantle in this precise point in time, its all about the now.
It was always going to be difficult for any draftee to pinch the spotlight after picking up Shai Bolton in the trade period. And even Quinton Narkle coming in to, at the very least, fatten the depth couldn't remove any genuine Bolton focus.
That said, we are a lot more excited about Murphy Reid being here than he and his family appeared to be. I don’t know if the Murphy family had a dog, but there is a fair chance they had just gotten word that it had died moments before Murph had his name read out!
No, of course we’re only being ridiculous, he’ll be fine and it would have been the paralysing shock of the moment that caused his, let's say subdued, reaction.
You have to be happy with the addition of Quinton Narkle, Charlie Nicholls has no doubt been selected with a degree of project prospect in mind and Aiden Riddle appears some sort of replacement pick for us unfortunately losing Maxy Knobel.
However, we’re more excited about the prospect of the new Carr model pulling into the Cockburn parking lot! We hold a hopeful flame Jaren Carr is more than a chip off the old engine block and that he shares his uncle’s values. Are we going to see shades of yesteryear? Is there a new agitator in town?
Plenty of other Docker data to get through so, if you’re showing summer deficiencies in your purple levels and you need to boost your consumption, we’re a short-term synthetic hit right here. We’re neither a safe or effective option but hey, we don’t enforce listening mandates!
You’d think we’d be all out of nonsense just writing this podcast episode blurb, but you’d be mistaken! Unfortunately, there is plenty more absurdity so, if you can’t find a better option, feel free to tune in.

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We had to pony up a bit more cheese than we had hoped, but Shai isn’t the only one smiling now. Time to Restump Podcast the momentous occasion of the second coming of Bolton.
It’s been too long between Bolton drinks at Freo. While he may have only managed two games for the purple in 1999, we can’t undervalue the work Shai’s Dad, Darren, did for Fremantle off the field in 1998!
We’ve struggled to land a true top line forward from many attempts over our thirty-year history, so this is a pretty pivotal moment for the club. It feels like we’ve taken a substantial step towards the promised land, and without playing a game.
It really is starting to feel like we’re getting our ducks, or rather docks, in a row. Obviously one player doesn’t deliver you success, but at this particular time and in this particular team, Shai Bolton does seem a serious piece of the purple premiership puzzle.
There has been the odd speed bump along the way, but the build has been rather methodical. The draft work has been impressive and, despite the abuse the club has copped at times from fans and media, the list management has been superb.
There comes a time when you must pull the trigger, move the chips to middle of the table and go all in. With the window starting to open, landing the versatile Bolton, fulfilling a desperate area of need and, dare we say, putting the finishing touches on the long-term build, is our superbly timed pulling of the trigger.
We all know there are no guarantees, there are only efforts. But we’ve done the hard yards, Lord knows we’ve done the hard yards, so it is time to release the Kraken, take a genuine run at it, hope for a bit of luck and maybe, just maybe, in the near future, we’ll finally get to experience the ultimate success.
We all have our thoughts and opinions on Shai Bolton himself and what we coughed up to get him. It now matters not, because the deal is done, and you’re kidding yourself if you’re not at least even secretly excited about his arrival.
We can agree, we can disagree and we can agree to disagree, but don’t bite off your nose to spite your face if you’re holding a negative position. Don’t do yourself a disservice and be that guy! We’re potentially entering unchartered waters, you only get to win a first premiership once, you want to live it, you want to be immersed in it, so you want to get on board the Bolton Bandwagon and enjoy every enthralling moment.
While not nearly as exciting or entertaining, meanwhile you’re free to join us on the pod as we annotate, celebrate and possibly over-exaggerate the often-balletic Bolton.

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It's JT's constitutional right to bare arms! Time to Restump Podcast the exorcising of the Demons.
The Dees are zero and four so, in theory, this shouldn't be a danger game for us. And to be honest, when you look at how mentally and physically depleted they are, even from a superstitiously purple perspective, it kind of isn't.
They're horribly out of form, there seems plenty not right internally and they're seemingly dropping players to make confusing statements. They’ve pretty much just dropped their recognised forward line what appears to be predominantly based on panic.
Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver and Jack Jack Viney in the middle being fed by Max Gawn made you feel a little uneasy yesteryear. But, while they’re still highly productive in their own right, they're far from their premiership year selves and they don’t seem to have the same on field support network around them. It's leaving the task up to too few.
While they have 2026 Fremantle forward Kozzi Pickett out there, they look a touch fragile in the scoring department and with him and defender Steven May under injury clouds all week, their defence might be a tad shaky as well.
Is this the dreaded research based arrogant confidence rearing its ugly and unwanted head again? We all know hubris is the downfall of man, but it really is difficult to feel unassured again this week. That all probably says more about where Melbourne is at, rather than it does about our ability to put them away with ease.
On the flip side of Melbourne’s woes, we're in pretty decent shape and maybe, to further rub salt into the Dee's wounds, we've brought in Oscar McDonald to face his former Demons.
While we’re on an upwards trend, we’re probably not playing as well as we appear. We’re 10th in the league for defence and other than Geelong in round one, we haven’t as yet played any team that is top eight for offence. So, while banking the four points is the primary concern, this is an opportunistic game to tune up our system, put some much needed emphasis on tightening up our defence and stack on a few percentage points.
The Restump Investment turned Salvage Operation Club is back again. We’ve unsurprisingly struggled but Jojo has built his term deposit bank to $400. The inevitable fall is getting bigger!
If you’re looking for a good listen this good Friday, what can we tell you, your GPS coordinates are way off. However, if its 30 life wasting minutes of purple prattle you are after, we’ve got you covered! So, come right in, bring your ears and make yourselves at home.

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It really hurts us to say it, but they have broken our trust. What’s that line about being able to place more trust in curried egg sandwiches from the petrol station? Time to Restump Podcast Saturday’s purple heart break.

A vital component in the building of trust is consistency. Without it, by its very nature, trust cannot exist. Yet, ironically the only area of consistency we can trust the Freo Dockers in, is inconsistency.

Once again, Freo has fooled many of us on the back of what we knew and acknowledged were soft victories. How did we think the consistent, less than substandard performances were behind us? Prior to Saturday we stated how poor our defensive efforts have been, and have been against the least offensive teams! Yet even so we could not fathom being unable to convincingly beat the Dees.

Are we overrating the list? Do we have a team of talented players that do not comprise a genuinely talented team? Or is the list still not ready or equipped to handle the relentless rigors of AFL football? Yes, Sean Darcy is severely underdone and Heath Chapman’s absence hurt us. But they weren’t reasons for getting rolled by a zero and five team.

Whatever the case we had 15 players with 80 or more games of experience, 11 of them with beyond 100 games under their belts out there on Saturday. So, there is no excuse for that lack of intent, the unwillingness to compete at the contest or the failure to chase and tackle. They’re called non-negotiables for a reason! They’re all prerequisites for being on an AFL list.

Fresh off signing a long-term deal, you wonder what is going through Andy Brayshaw’s head? Next to no one went with him in that final quarter when the game was there to be taken. Caleb Serong was monstered by Jack Viney who was magnificent in his role. Where was the help for him? Did anyone cause Viney any discomfort? Did anyone attempt to block Viney for Serong?

The “Sack the Coach” crew have predictably come out of hibernation as its their easy go to answer for everything. But if you think 80+ gamers aren’t bringing the basics unless the coach drills it into them, then the problem probably isn’t entirely with the coach. And four quarters of the basics wins that game!

That been said and to be fair to the coach doubters, Justin Longmuir now inevitably finds himself under immense pressure as another of this type of performance warrants putting everything on the table for questioning. With the ominous fixture ahead, things need to change overnight and for more than a week or two for JL not to be in a more precarious position than he unfortunately is right now.

Is it overdue for an actual example to made at the selection table? More often than not, players have seemingly been given the opportunity to respond and rectify a poor performance the following week, and have usually done so. But given the continual sporadic nature of the same poor performances occurring, maybe they’ve used up all their redemption chances? There has seemingly been a reluctance to cut other than the usual suspects. What did our former coach Rosco say? “Execute one to educate a thousand.”

Yes, we will regroup as we always do and we will go again. It is emotionally taxing and it is frustrating, at times excruciating and demoralising. But while we’re in for a long and often painful season if Saturday is indicative of what is to sporadically turn up, this is football and Fremantle is our team.

This isn’t everyone’s first grief counselling rodeo. We’ve all been here more times than we care to recall. So, you know the drill. Join us as we search for answers, for reasoning and for purpose. Let’s work through the pain on the pod once more.

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