Dockers Break AFL Record

Fremantle Kicks National Competition's Lowest Score

Jul 13, 2009 Lee-Ann Khoh

How does Fremantle's dismal Round 15 effort compare to days gone by? What can the club look forward to in the future?

Saturday, July 11, 2009 was a record breaking day for the Fremantle Dockers but for all the wrong reasons. They scored just one point in the first half; the lowest half time score since Fitzroy's 0.0 against Essendon in Round 1, 1995. Ryan Murphy kicked Fremantle's only goal at the 11-minute mark of the third quarter, and their final score of 1.7 (13) was the lowest since the introduction of the national competition in 1987.

Here is a list of damning final scores in VFL/AFL history, according to the West Australian (July 13, 2009; The Game liftout, p. 3).

Lowest Scores Since the VFL Expansion

  • Round 15, 2009: Fremantle 1.7 (13) lost to Adelaide 19.16 (130)
  • Round 11, 1989: Fitzroy 1.8 (14) lost to North Melbourne 6.13 (49)
  • Round 11, 1991: Carlton 1.10 (16) lost to Footscray 8.9 (57)
  • Round 12, 1988: Brisbane 2.5 (18) lost to Hawthorn 10.20 (80)
  • Round 13, 1987: Collingwood 2.6 (18) lost to North Melbourne 10.12 (72)
  • Round 15, 1989: West Coat 1.12 (18) lost to Essendon 25.10 (160)

Lowest Scores Since World War I

  • Round 5, 1953: Fitzroy 1.0 (6) lost to Footscray 10.6 (66)
  • Round 9, 1915: St Kilda 1.1 (7) lost to Carlton 5.15 (45)
  • Round 16, 1961: Richmond 0.8 (8) lost to St Kilda 12.19 (91)
  • Round 16, 1957: St Kilda 1.5 (11) lost to Melbourne 6.13 (49)
  • Round 9, 1926: Hawthorn 1.7 (13) lost to Melbourne 21.28 (154)
  • Grand Final, 1927: Richmond 1.7 (13) lost to Collingwood 2.13 (25)
  • Round 15, 2009: Fremantle 1.7 (13) lost to Adelaide 19.16 (130)

Fremantle's Lowest Ever Scores

  • Round 15, 2009: 1.7 (13) vs Adelaide 19.16 (130)
  • Round 20, 2004: 3.7 (25) vs Geelong 9.21 (75)
  • Round 4, 2009: 4.4 (28) vs St Kilda 17. 9 (111)
  • Round 7, 1996: 5.6 (36) vs Adelaide 20.12 (132)
  • Round 6, 1997: 6.7 (43) vs Geelong 14.13 (97)

Where to now for Fremantle?

While it does not excuse the insipid performance, the Dockers were missing several first choice players against Adelaide, including captain Matthew Pavlich and ruckman Aaron Sandilands, but questions remain. How will the Dockers go in the remaining seven rounds of the season? Who will be cut from the list at the end of the year? Is coach Mark Harvey's job safe?

Fremantle's Years of Underachievement

The Dockers are the only team in the AFL that has never won a premiership or played in a grand final. Since their first season in 1995, they have made the finals twice (2003 and 2006). Their only finals win was a 14.18 (102) to 11.8 (74) victory over Melbourne in 2006.

At the completion of Round 15, they are sitting on the bottom of the AFL ladder with three wins and 12 losses for the season.

Fremantle's Future

The club has fielded 10 first year players in 2009: Stephen Hill, Nic Suban, Greg Broughton, Hayden Ballantyne, Zac Clarke, Michael Walters, Clancee Pearce, Matt de Boer, Luke Pratt, and Tim Ruffles who made his debut against Adelaide on the weekend. Some of these players have been the brightest sparks of the Dockers' disappointing season.

Can these promising young players turn the club's fortunes around and form the nucleus of Fremantle's first premiership team in the next few years?

The copyright of the article Dockers Break AFL Record in Football is owned by Lee-Ann Khoh. Permission to republish Dockers Break AFL Record in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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