Fremantle’s bid to snare a top-two berth gained further momentum with a record 113-point AFL thumping of Greater Western Sydney at Patersons Stadium on Sunday.
The Dockers booted the opening seven goals of the match and overcame a brief GWS fightback to post the club record 24.13 (157) to 6.8 (44) victory.
The win was Fremantle’s biggest in their history, eclipsing the 112-point winning margin against Collingwood in 2005.
But more importantly, it lifted Fremantle to within 6.2 per cent of third-placed Sydney, who face St Kilda, Geelong and Hawthorn in a tough run home.
The Dockers still trail second-placed Geelong by two competition points, but can overcome them if the Cats lose against either West Coast (away), Sydney (home) or Brisbane (home).
GWS forward Jeremy Cameron booted four goals to lift himself to within two goals of West Coast’s Josh Kennedy in the race for the Coleman medal.
But there was little else to cheer about for the Giants, who kicked just one goal after halftime as the Dockers unleashed a brutal onslaught.
Fremantle lost key midfielder Stephen Hill to a tight hamstring before the match, but utility Nick Suban, Michael Barlow and Lachie Neale starred in his absence.
Goalsneak Hayden Ballantyne kicked a contender for a goal of the year when he gathered the ball on the wing, burned off Zac Williams with three bounces before nailing the running goal.
GWS tried their best to match Fremantle’s pressure in the opening term.
But their lack of polish in tight confines proved costly as the Dockers registered six unanswered goals on the back of a strong breeze.
Fremantle registered a score from each of their 13 inside-50s for the quarter, and a 100-plus point margin looked on the cards when the home side stretched their lead out to 47 points early in the second quarter.
GWS looked every bit of a second-year club still struggling to find their feet, and had to wait until eight minutes into the second quarter before registering their first goal of the match courtesy of Cameron.
The 20-year-old had been well held by Zac Dawson up until that point.
But with the Giants’ young guns suddenly finding their feet in the midfield, Cameron broke off the leash to boot three goals and set up another as GWS closed the margin to 17 points.
However, GWS would kick just one more goal for the match as Fremantle went on the rampage with a 16-goal second half.