West Coast will be relying on its strength at centre clearances to expose a rare recent weakness in Fremantle’s armoury in Friday night’s western derby at Optus Stadium.
The Eagles had a 15-11 victory over Brisbane in that area of the ground last round in what has been a positive trend for the majority of the season, led by ruck force Bailey Williams and midfielders Harley Reid, Tim Kelly, Elliot Yeo and Will Duursma.
On the same day, the Dockers were well beaten in that metric by a Port Adelaide team missing its inside bull Zak Butters and have won only five of 10 overall clearance battles since round nine.
It’s one area the dominant Dockers will be looking to improve on heading towards finals.
“Our mids have been doing an awesome job all year and we have full faith in those boys to go out there and really match it with them,” West Coast utility Brady Hough said.
“If we can get the ball going forward and match them in that space and win that space it goes a long way to winning the game.
“They’ll be going after it. We have full faith in those boys to get it done, and that’s a massive part of the game.
“They obviously have a lot of strength in their midfield and we won’t underestimate them at all.
“But our midfield have been doing a great job all year. So I’ve been lucky enough to float through there a little bit and work with some of those boys, and the way they’re going about it really makes us boys proud.”
Hough said Reid was “moving pretty well” at training on Tuesday morning, following an ankle injury he suffered against the Lions.
“He’ll tick some things off with the doctors later in the week,” Hough said.
“He looks all right. I spoke to him, he feels all right. So hopefully he’s out there.
“He’s doing a massive job for us week in week out. He’s playing the right brand of footy. He’s tough. Gets in and under, wins the ball for us. So he’s obviously a massive player, massive part of that midfield that’s really building and playing a great brand of footy in there.
“So hopefully he’s out there. We love playing with him and I can’t wait to continue the journey with him in there and that special midfield that they’re building.“
Hough has been a highly effective run-with player for coach Andrew McQualter this season, reducing the impact of midfielders and forwards the ilk of Jack Lukosius, Mykelti Lefau, Kysaiah Pickett and Luke Davies-Uniacke.
He was handed the tough job on Brisbane’s match-winner Charlie Cameron last round and kept him honest as the Eagles lost by 24 points.
In the first western derby last season, Hough was sent to Shai Bolton (round three) for 50 minutes, keeping him to 11 disposals and a goal.
In round 20, he guarded Caleb Serong for 83 minutes, limiting to the Dockers’ co-vice captain to 12 disposals and no uncontested possessions, forcing him to win his own ball for the whole game.
In round six this season, he was sent to Murphy Reid, leaving Friday night’s opponent up in the air.
The Eagles will also be without defender Liam Baker who will miss through suspension, meaning Hough may be required to play the majority of the game in the back half.
“I played back on the weekend and have obviously been playing midfield a little bit as well. So not too sure what it will look like, but I’ll leave it up to Mini (McQualter) and I’ll do whatever he says,” Hough said.
“It’s a little bit of a challenge sometimes, playing different roles week in week out. You don’t get to settle in too much, but ... I’m happy to do any role the team needs.
“I’ve enjoyed my time in the midfield and I enjoyed getting back to the backline on the weekend.
“It’s a great backline to be a part of and I’d be really happy to build with those boys down there.
“Rhett Bazzo’s in awesome form. Obviously, Rubes (Reuben Ginbey) had a massive year and unfortunately is out for the year. But there’s a lot of talent down there and I think we can build something pretty special in that backline.”
Hough, however, said there was no mistaking the motivation against the top-of-the-ladder premiership fancy.
“We’re going in for a win,” he said.
“We spoke about getting wins at the back end of the year, building momentum. Obviously we’re not going to make finals, but our goal each week is to go in there and get a win.
“They’re a great side, but we showed last week that we can match up with some pretty good teams.
“We put ourselves in a position to win the game and they are the reigning premiers and a really good side, so I was proud of the boys to obviously take it up to them.
“But disappointed in the end. We’re trying to get as many many wins as we can on the way home, and we had an opportunity there, and unfortunately couldn’t get over the line, but a lot of positives to take out the game.
“A lot of things we still need to work on with some connection and things like that but overall, we’re pretty pleased.”
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