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1h ago

Sydney Upset Reshuffles AFL Finals as Fremantle Faces Knockout Path

The Swans’ big win has pushed Fremantle into back-to-back sudden-death games and raised fresh selection and injury questions for the Dockers’ premiership bid.

Noa McNaughton kicked two goals in her second game to help Fremantle to the win.
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After their qualifying final loss to the Hawks, Fremantle will host Geelong in a semi-final. (Richard Wainwright/AAP PHOTOS)
Tom Papley's Sydney await Freo in a prelim final if the Dockers can get past Geelong.

Overview

  • Sydney produced a 53-point qualifying-final win over Brisbane on Saturday, doing so while missing five suspended players and after captain Callum Mills left early with an injury.
  • Fremantle, which lost its qualifying final to Hawthorn, must now win consecutive knockout matches to reach the grand final with a home semifinal confirmed against Geelong at Optus Stadium on Friday night with a 6.10pm bounce.
  • Bookmakers shortened Fremantle’s premiership odds after the Swans’ upset and the draw change, reflecting market views that the Dockers’ path to the flag is now more precarious.
  • Fremantle’s broader availability worries deepened when AFLW All-Australian ruck Mim Strom suffered a shoulder injury on Sunday, a loss that could affect Walyalup’s finals hopes and highlight the club’s cross-code personnel pressures.
  • AFL analysis notes a recent rise in minor premiers falling out early in finals and shows that losing a qualifying final has often forced top teams into tougher routes to the decider, a pattern that now frames Fremantle’s challenge.