Josh Treacy celebrates a goal during Fremantle’s clash against Carlton in round 21, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos

FREMANTLE is knocking on the door of the top four after surging late to beat a dogged Carlton by 27 points at Optus Stadium, but the win could come at a significant cost after star midfielder Hayden Young suffered a groin injury.

The Dockers were challenged by the determined Blues and trailed by eight points at three-quarter time, but they booted seven goals to one in the run home to prevail 15.4 (94) to 10.7 (67) in a critical win to their finals chances.

DOCKERS v BLUES Full match coverage and stats

They were forced to do it without Young after the star onballer went down with a groin injury in the first quarter, halting what had been a brilliant comeback from hamstring surgery over the past fortnight.

Carlton threatened to take advantage in the midfield and dominated stoppages through the first half, building a game-high 24-point lead, but the Dockers responded to win their seventh straight game at home, now sitting only percentage behind fourth-placed Geelong.

The Dockers dug deep in the fourth quarter, with their tall forwards winning contests ahead of the ball and Caleb Serong overcoming a quiet start to win nine critical possessions.

Josh Treacy, Jye Amiss and Pat Voss all kicked three goals and stood up in critical moments, while small forward Isaiah Dudley booted a pair of fourth-quarter goals when the game was at its tightest and fiercest.

Star big man Luke Jackson finished with 27 disposals and eight clearances in another excellent game as a midfielder and ruck, while Andrew Brayshaw lifted in the second half to finish with a game-high 10 clearances.

The backline was again led superbly by Jordan Clark (30 and eight rebounds), while Brennan Cox handled the talls and intercepted well, particularly when the team was under siege with inside 50s.

The Blues were on a mission from the opening bounce, with Cooper Lord heading to Serong and setting the tone early with a big tackle as Ashton Moir crumbed to kick the opening goal for the visitors.

It was a dominant start as the Blues locked the ball in their front half with the first 10 inside 50s and built a 24-point lead, with wingman Blake Acres snapping a classy goal against his former team.

It took former Blue Oscar McDonald to return favour and get the Dockers on the board, but their inability to buffer the Blues’ pressure and move the ball was a huge concern for the finals aspirants.  

Young joined his teammates at the quarter-time huddle as Justin Longmuir implored his team to lift, but the gun onballer took no further part in the game as Carlton’s midfield continued to control the match through centre clearance wins.

Their pressure also forced Fremantle into backwards handballs and skill errors as Harry O’Farrell and Lachie Fogarty pushed the margin back out to four goals.

Treacy’s snap from just inside 50m was a highlight for the Dockers, but they needed to fix their midfield issues at the main break to get back into the game, trailing 11-1 in centre clearances at half-time, and 31-20 in overall clearances.

Serong lifted in the third, alongside Treacy and young gun Murphy Reid, with Freo bringing plenty of pressure of its own to go on a three-goal run, while Harry McKay kept the Blues in front with a sharp set shot from the boundary.

When Treacy converted from outside 50m early in the fourth quarter, the Dockers had their first lead for the game, setting up a thrilling finish. 

Young injured again
A challenging season for Hayden Young took another turn on Sunday, with the gun midfielder substituted at quarter-time with a groin injury. Young headed to the bench late in the first quarter and looked in pain as physio staff worked on his groin. The 24-year-old was in his third game back from hamstring surgery, having played a match-winning role as substitute against Collingwood before winning the Glendinning-Allan Medal as best afield against West Coast. More match-time loomed against Carlton, but the Dockers may now need to look elsewhere to give their midfield the turbo charge Young had offered in the past fortnight. 

Ecstasy to agony for young Blue
It took a 50m penalty against Josh Treacy in the second quarter to bring Carlton defender Harry O’Farrell into range, with the first-year Blue taking his chance and slotting his first career goal. Teammates swamped the six-game teenager in one of the highlights of the first half, but the lowlight followed minutes later when he went down innocuously with a knee injury after a marking contest. The Blues said O’Farrell had suffered a knee strain and would be assessed further after the team returns to Melbourne. 

Centre clearance demolition
It’s rare to see a centre clearance smashing like the Blues delivered in the first half on Sunday, let alone against a star studded Freo midfield that, despite off games against St Kilda, still ranks No.5 in the AFL for centre clearance differential. The Blues won the centre clearances 6-1 in the first quarter, continuing to bully them at the source in the second and going 5-0. Nine different players won centre clearances for the Blues as they mixed up their structure, but the bigger bodies of Patrick Cripps and George Hewett were telling. The tally in the second half was 6-5 in the Dockers’ favour as they raced away to win.

FREMANTLE     2.0   4.1   8.2   15.4 (94)
CARLTON         5.0   8.1   9.4   10.7 (67)

GOALS
Fremantle: Voss 3, Treacy 3, Amiss 3, Dudley 2, Switkowski, Reid, McDonald, Jackson
Carlton: Evans 2, Williams, O’Farrell, Motlop, Moir, McKay, Fogarty, Durdin, Acres

BEST      
Fremantle: Jackson, Treacy, Voss, Clark, Amiss, Brayshaw, Cox
Carlton: Cripps, Hewett, Lord, Evans, Williams, Haynes

INJURIES
Fremantle: Young (groin)
Carlton: O’Farrell (knee)

SUBSTITUTES
Fremantle: Neil Erasmus (replaced Hayden Young at quarter time)
Carlton: Corey Durdin (replaced Harry O’Farrell in the second quarter)

Crowd: 39,358 at Optus Stadium