As the Western Bulldogs celebrate 100 years of playing in the VFL/AFL, it’s interesting to note that almost a third of that period has involved matches against Fremantle.
It’s now 30 years since Fremantle joined the AFL, and the Dogs and Dockers have been involved in some great games during those three decades. In fact, the very first meeting of the two sides was a thrilling match that was undecided until after the final siren.
That inaugural game between the two sides came in Round 5, 1995. By that stage Freo had shown it was already a team to be reckoned with, having beaten 1994 Grand Finalists Geelong the week before. The Dockers had already tasted victory at Whitten Oval too, beating Fitzroy by 43 points only a fortnight before returning to the venue to face the Bulldogs.
The game was tight all afternoon, with momentum swinging both ways. The Dogs led by two points at quarter time, but Fremantle was 10 points ahead at the long break and again at the last change of ends. The Bulldogs gradually got on top in the final term but a late surge from the Dockers brought them within two points in the game’s final minute.
When the final siren sounded, the Dogs still held that two-point lead, but Fremantle skipper Ben Allan had the ball in hand, having marked just before the siren. As Allan lined up from just outside 50 metres, 16,800 fans at Whitten Oval held their breath. Allan let fly with a torpedo, but the kick fell short, giving Footscray victory by two points.
Playing in that first match for the Dogs was a man who later became a Docker, while Fremantle’s side included a player who would finish his AFL career as a Bulldog.
In just his sixth AFL game, 19-year-old Daniel Hargraves kicked two vital goals for the Dogs that afternoon. Hargraves eventually played 38 games for the Bulldogs before becoming a Docker in 1998, adding three more games to his AFL tally.
Also kicking two goals that afternoon was Docker Andrew Wills. Fremantle was already Wills’ second club. He began his AFL career with Geelong in 1991. He played 59 games in four seasons at the Cats and 79 for the Dockers from 1995 to 1999. Wills came to the Kennel in 2000, playing 10 matches in red, white and blue in his final AFL season.
Other notable footballers to have been both Dogs and Dockers include Kingsley Hunter (49 games for Fremantle, 57 for the Bulldogs), Daniel Bandy (105 for Freo, 45 for Bulldogs), Hayden Crozier (69 for Freo, 73 for Bulldogs), 2016 premiership player Joel Hamling (68 for Freo, 23 for Bulldogs) and, of course, the man currently playing arguably the best football of his career, Rory Lobb.
Lobb’s AFL journey began with 74 games for the GWS Giants and was followed by 66 matches in four seasons with Fremantle. Now in his third season at Mission Whitten Oval, Lobb has played 38 games for the Bulldogs and is on track to become just the fifth player in V/AFL history to play 50-plus games for three different clubs (after Glenn Coleman, Leigh Brown, Adam Treloar and Brad Hill).
Taking on the Dockers in Perth has traditionally held few fears for the Bulldogs. The Dogs have had some big away wins against Freo, including a 93-point trashing of the Dockers at Subiaco in 2000, a season-opening 63-point win at the same venue in 2009 and a 49-point victory at Optus Stadium only two years ago in Toby McLean’s 100th AFL match.
Another memorable away win came at Subiaco in 2008 when the Bulldogs stormed home to claim a three-point win, having trailed by as much as 18 points midway through the final quarter. Future skipper Bob Murphy kicked three goals for the Doggies that afternoon.
The Dogs and Dockers have met 40 times across 30 seasons at seven different venues, with the Bulldogs winning 21 games and Fremantle 19. The two sides have never played out a draw.
