Justin Longmuir is the first former Fremantle player to be named as the senior coach of the club.
Yes, there was inaugural skipper Ben Allan who was interim coach for half of 2001 after the sacking of Damian Drum, but he didn’t continue after the season. Longmuir has purple blood coursing through his veins.
He played 139 games and kicked 166 goals for the Dockers between 1999 and 2007. None were more famous than his huge mark and resultant goal after the siren to beat St Kilda at Subiaco in 2005.
He pretty much is Fremantle royalty.
But despite having bled and broken bones for the club – he retired prematurely at age 26 having lost the passion to play because of injury – he hasn’t put much thought into, let alone considered, the romance of masterminding the club’s maiden premiership.
“I didn’t see myself getting the job because I’m a past player of the club,” he told the AFL Record.
“I see it as because I went away and worked really hard on my craft and invested in becoming the best coach I could be. That’s what has got me here now.”
He caught the coaching bug not long after retiring, having not thought himself the coaching type when he played.
He started at West Perth as a line coach before moving back to the Dockers, where he also dabbled in recruiting.
A young, raw Nat Fyfe joined the club around that time.
