Fremantle captain Alex Pearce delivered a touching message to his mother following Fremantle’s victory in the Western Derby.
The Dockers surged to a 15.16 (106) 10.8 (68) victory against WA rivals West Coast, with Caleb Serong etching his name into Western Derby history, winning yet another best-on-the-ground medal, during the win.
Following the 38-point victory, Pearce revealed to the crowd inside the Optus that his mother had been unwell in hospital but sent a message to his mum.
‘Just one final one,’ the Docker captain began.
‘My mum who is watching at the moment, she’s in hospital in Tasmania.
‘Love you very much mum, hope you get better soon,’ he added before blowing a kiss to the camera.
Fremantle captain Alex Pearce delivered a touching message to his mother following Fremantle’s victory in the Western Derby
The Dockers captain revealed his mother had been in hospital and had been watching the Dockers beat the Eagles
Concerns were raised after Pearce had limped from the ground with a knee injury after going up for a marking contest.
But the key-defender managed to return to play out the remainder of the match.
Serong, meanwhile, tallied 35 disposals and 10 clearances in Sunday’s match to snare his fourth Glendinning-Allan medal, joining Paul Hasleby at the top of the all-time list.
The 38-point victory in front of 53,289 fans was Fremantle’s first win of the season, improving their record to 1-2 ahead of next Sunday’s home clash with the Western Bulldogs.
West Coast are 0-3 and are away to the Giants next Sunday.
The Eagles’ poor day was made even worse when star defender Jeremy McGovern limped off late in the third quarter with a groin injury.
Jye Amiss (four goals) and Josh Treacy (three goals) were potent in attack for Fremantle, while Andrew Brayshaw (29 disposals, 696m gained) starred alongside Serong in the midfield.
Luke Jackson was a force in the ruck on the way to 17 disposals, 35 hit-outs and a goal.
Pearce (left) had limped from the ground with a knee injury after going up for a marking contest but returned to the footy pitch soon after
The victory meant that Freo picked up thier first win of the 2025 season while West Coast are winless so far in 2025
For West Coast, Liam Baker finished with 23 possessions, defender Ryan Maric racked up 28 disposals and 445m gained, Jamie Cripps kicked two long-range goals from near the boundary and emerging forward Archer Reid kicked two goals.
But Harley Reid didn’t come close to repeating his derby heroics from last year.
Reid kicked three goals from 19 disposals when West Coast upset Fremantle early last season, and he posted 29 disposals and 10 clearances against them later in the year.
But he couldn’t get going on Sunday, restricted to just seven disposals in the first half en route to 15 disposals, one clearance and one goal for the match.
In the dying minutes, Reid engaged in a wrestle with Serong that led to a mini melee between the two sides.
Fremantle were forced to swing a late double change, with the in-form Jaeger O’Meara (illness) and rebounding defender Corey Wagner (injured) replaced by Karl Worner and James Aish.
Dockers forward Patrick Voss endured a busy start to the match – but not in the way he would have liked.
First, Voss’s over-zealous high five resulted in a poked eye to teammate Treacy, who had to go to the bench for treatment.
Then a short time later, Voss gave away a downfield free kick that eventually led to a West Coast goal.
He also shanked a shot on goal later in the term.
Two quick goals to debutant Isaiah Dudley ensured Fremantle entered the first break with a 15-point lead, but it should have been much more given the Dockers dominated the inside 50 count 21-7.
Treacy broke the game open in the second quarter with three goals, including an after-the-siren effort from a tricky angle after Eagles midfielder Tim Kelly coughed the ball up in the midfield.
It was more of the same in the final quarter, with Fremantle ending with a whopping 65-37 advantage in the inside 50s
The 26-point half-time lead for Fremantle was just reward given they had doubled West Coast in the inside 50 count (34-17).
West Coast’s struggles were highlighted by skipper Oscar Allen, who was starved of supply in the first half on the way to just one disposal.
Allen finished with only four possessions for the match, spending some long stints in defence in the second half.
Harley Reid had a bad turnover early in the third quarter, but he made up for it later in the term with a spectacular mark and goal.
Fremantle still won the quarter four goals to three, giving them a match-winning 36-point lead at the final change.
It was more of the same in the final quarter, with Fremantle ending with a whopping 65-37 advantage in the inside 50s.
