Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir was less than pleased with his club's performance on Saturday after succumbing to a 78-point loss to Geelong.
The Cats had the game by the scruff of the neck for the majority of the afternoon, but a four-goal resurgence from debutant Murphy Reid brought the visitors within striking distance.
However, playing in trying conditions at Kardinia Park, Longmuir's men had no answers for the opposition, saying he'd head back to the drawing board to fix the glaring issues.
"I just thought after the first five minutes we weren't tough enough," Longmuir said post-match.
"I thought their pressure was at a level we couldn't handle, and we couldn't apply the same pressure to themโฆ their pressure was at a level where we weren't used to, weren't up to.
"We definitely were tired, and I mean, that's probably what happens when you're chasing backside all day.
"For the first half, we were working so hard to get the ball back off them, and then you burn so many tickets trying to get back in the game in the third quarter, and we definitely got fatigued."
Despite Reid's extraordinary debut, Longmuir refused to heap too much praise on the youngster, given he, like his teammates, weren't consistent throughout the entire match that led to the blowout.
MAKE THAT FOUR IN FOUR MINUTES FOR THE DEBUTANT ๐คฏ
Murphy Reid, remember the name ๐#AFLCatsFreo pic.twitter.com/ksRYPKBFqp
— AFL (@AFL) March 15, 2025
"He had a great third quarter, a great patch, Murphy, and he's going to grow with all aspects of his game. So he probably played well I guess, but a bit like the rest of the team, you know. What was his first, second and fourth quarter like?" Longmuir said.
"I don't want to take any gloss off his third quarter because not many young kids can come and do that, so yeah, hats off to him, but we need a more consistent performance across the four quarters from everyone on the team."
Lively forward pair Shai Bolton and Michael Walters could come into the selection frame in Round 2 after missing the Geelong loss.
