Paul Hasleby is firmly of the belief that Fremantle will bounce back to play finals in 2024.
The Dockers were seen in September in 2022 when winning a final before falling sharply to 14th in 2023.
As a result of that, and with his contract up this year, there has been plenty of perceived pressure placed on coach Justin Longmuir ahead of the new campaign.
But Hasleby does believe that Longmuir will succeed at the helm in 2024 before ultimately coaching on at the club in 2025.
He’s also failing to work out why the commentary surrounding Freo and Longmuir is so stark in contrast to Adelaide and Matthew Nicks who many believe are on the march.
“I do,” Hasleby replied on SEN WA Breakfast when asked if he believes Longmuir will be there next year.
“I’m a believer that they will have a better year this year.
“You talk about the rhetoric between Fremantle right now and Adelaide right now. They’re about to sign Matthew Nicks, or they’re in talks, and everybody is talking about how good Adelaide are going to be.
“They had one win difference. Fremantle had 10, but it went pear-shaped. I think they got a little bit arrogant, potentially, with some of the changes they made at the end of the year.
“They had success in 2022 and that went pear-shaped pretty quickly for them.”
Hasleby has identified the Dockers players who he feels will be central to the turnaround in fortunes throughout the 2024 campaign.
“(Nat) Fyfe fit, although we still wait to see if he gets to the starting line as we’ve been in this position the last couple of years,” he continued.
“Matt Taberner another one. He may not play but it’s good depth.
“A lot of pressure is on Jye Amiss. If he gets injured then all of a sudden it changes your prediction for Fremantle. But if you’ve got Taberner waiting in the wings who can come in and maybe get to 30 goals…
“Josh Treacy, they’re singing about him a lot. Fourth year now, I think he’s going to be better for it.
“Through the midfield, I’m not sure if Jaeger O’Meara is going to get a start because of Fyfe going back in and Matt Johnson’s development as well.”
So, do the Dockers play finals in 2024?
“I think they can, yep,” Hasleby said succinctly.
Freo will have a first competitive match simulation against West Coast in Lathlain on February 24 before they take on Port Adelaide at Alberton Oval in the AFL Community Series on March 1.
Their 2024 season proper kicks off against Brisbane at Optus Stadium on March 17.