Justin Longmuir future, Fremantle Dockers coach, trade news, Lachie Schultz, Liam Henry, future targets, draft picks, Logan McDonald, latest news

Departures from Fremantle during the trade period have put senior coach Justin Longmuir under pressure at the start of the 2024 season, according to Fox Footy pundits, with what is shaping up to be a defining year for the club.

The moves of Lachie Schultz and Liam Henry to Collingwood and St Kilda respectively add to a long list of key names who have left the Dockers in recent years, including Blake Acres, Griffin Logue, Rory Lobb, Adam Cerra, Bradley Hill, Ed Langdon and Lachie. Neale.

After a promising rise through a rebuilding phase under Longmuir since he first took the helm in 2020 – including guiding the Dockers to a near top-four finish in 2022 – the club have fallen into the bottom five this season.

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Therefore, the departures of more senior players, including Joel Hamling to Sydney and Schultz, who finished sixth among the club’s best and fairest this year and was its second top scorer, are a concern ahead of a crucial year when Freo hope bounce.

Speaking on Fox Footy’s Trading daydouble premiership Kangaroo David King suggested a slow start to 2024 could put Longmuir, whose contract expires at the end of next season, under pressure.

“It’s a concern going into a really important first phase of 2024, losing some senior players over the last couple of years,” King said of the program.

“They have lost four players in two years and they cannot afford to lose at this stage.

“It sets them back a little bit in terms of rebuilding and regenerating the roster. As we keep saying, rebuilt coaches do not survive.

“It really puts the coach under the hammer in the first six to eight weeks of next year.”

So where do the Dockers and Longmuir stand?

Following the trade period, the club has a lean hand in next month’s national draft, with only picks 34 and 46 after trading its first-round pick to Melbourne in the Luke Jackson deal and moved his second round pick to Port Adelaide as part of a pick swap.

Fremantle are, however, putting a lot of stock into next year’s draft with a huge amount of picks – three first-round picks (two tied with Collingwood and Port Adelaide) and two second-round picks.

But that will be after next season, in what is shaping up to be a defining 12 months.

This is a club that has already gone to the draft in recent years to build its core, led by Andrew Brayshaw, Caleb Serong, Sean Darcy, Hayden Young and Jye Amiss.

On the contrary, it is the Dockers who would like to consolidate their list and complete it with pieces, and not the other way around.

“If everything goes well, it’s never ideal to lose players, especially good players. It’s definitely something we didn’t want – especially losing Lachie and Liam,” Dockers list boss David Walls said. AFL Commercial Radio.

“Once they made their decision it was really about us taking action and just trying to get the best possible result for the club and make the most of it.

“I think with the hand we have, we’re really well prepared for the 2024 draft, but it also gives us options to come back (in the 2023 draft).”

This makes next season even more intriguing as the club enters a new uncertain phase despite the view in recent years from the footballing world that Fremantle was heading in the right direction.

How he behaves in 2024 could dictate the club’s strategy moving forward with its string of draft picks.

It’s worth noting, however, that this Dockers roster is still very young and may have arrived a little ahead of its time in 2022. The Dockers entered 2023 with the fourth-youngest team and third-least experienced.

Another disappointing season could see the club commit more to the youth movement and bring in the majority of its draft picks, while a slight improvement in performance could prompt it to get aggressive on the trade and draft front. free agency.

As Walls mentioned, the Dockers could still return in this year’s draft, if they want.

Whatever happens, the club will continue to monitor Western Australian talent in the league, having previously been linked with young Sydney forward Logan McDonald.

McDonald would likely be Fremantle’s No.1 target given his connection to WA and the club’s obvious need to strengthen its forward line, particularly following Schultz’s departure.

At just 21 years old, McDonald also fits the Dockers’ age demographic, while there is no club better placed from a draft capital perspective to play for him.

“Part of our list management strategy is to track all West Australians, particularly the quality ones and those who are starting to come out of contract,” Walls added.

“Logan clearly meets that criteria, but there are also many other West Australians in the competition who we follow very closely and would like to bring back.

“I feel like we have a very strong core group that is locked in and committed for the long term, and we will be targeting specific needs to really fill in over the next 12 months.”