‘F***ing horrible, man’: Inside shattered Dockers rooms as star’s gut-wrenching reaction revealed

Josh Treacy stood collapsed against the far wall, his left arm on his head, the colour drained from his face making the tinge of red around his eye lids even more distinct as family members and friends took their turns consoling the Docker.

The Big Cohuna was shattered. He had started Fremantle’s first grand final in 13 years with a brilliant goal but, not too long before the Wharfietime siren blared after Patrick Voss’s third and final goal, missed from the square under immense pressure.

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Not one Docker was blaming Treacy and nor should they. Footy clubs are not like that and a footy game twists and turns a million times. Certainly this grand final did. But star athletes do not see it like that and his devastation was clear.

But nor was it distinct. The beaten rooms of a grand final team can be a desolate place but the anguish felt sharper on Saturday night. Justin Longmuir had told his players how proud they should feel. And they should. But that does not soothe the pain.

To borrow from one lifelong fan whose face was drained of colour standing not too far from Treacy, it felt “f***ing horrible, man.” That mirrored the sentiments of Longmuir who, it is said, was cursing about it being a “prick of a game” sometimes.

Amen to that. It is hard to believe any player in the rooms will suffer a more heartbreaking loss than Saturday’s grand final.

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Shai Bolton was among the first of the devastated players to emerge from the inner room in the Fremantle rooms after Longmuir’s brief address, in which he stressed gratitude to the retiring Sam Switkowski, a bit after 6pm.

The premiership Tiger had taken his Norm Smith Medal off long before entering the rooms, noting that while he was proud to have won the honour, there was no cause for celebration when he and every one of his teammates were feeling so raw.

When he had zipped a ripper of a pass to Voss in a passage that saw Fremantle move to a 17-point lead, Bolton said he felt pretty comfortable a historic first premiership was theirs. Then the Lions rebounded with the most ferocious of finishes.

“It’s kind of hard to take that in, losing that way, especially in that fourth quarter,” he said.

“I’m honoured and I’m just proud of the boys with how we fought it out in all four quarters. Probably the last two minutes didn’t go our way. But we’ll be back.

“That is the thing with finals. It is all about moments. I think they took their moments in the last two minutes and we probably didn’t play our best footy then. To be honest, it is pretty hard because for four quarters … to lose like that, it is pretty hard.”

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As Bolton was speaking, skipper Alex Pearce emerged from the inner-room on crutches and hopped pass to hug his family.

While Corey Wagner was nursing on his left hip his son Remy, who was wearing his old man’s number on the back of a tiny Dockers jumper, the Dockers’ captain was clearly emotional as he engaged in a lengthy embrace.

The Dockers had been brilliant even after his grand final came to an end in awful circumstances, left lying face down on the wing after his Achilles gave way in the third term, but it is indisputable his inspirational leadership might have changed things.

“Alex is a great player and a great leader,” Bolton said.

“But I thought Oscar McDonald, Luke Ryan, Heath Chapman, Judd McVee, Karl Worner and Jordan Clark all stepped up and performed really well.”

Just before 6.15pm, Longmuir emerged from behind closed doors as well. Even for a losing rooms, the Dockers and their families drained from the area quicker than most, but the heartbreak was still evident as he assessed the scene.

He watched for a few seconds, then put of his hands to his head. Unbelievable. A “prick of a game”. Soon after he disappeared back into the rooms before later returning to greet his family standing towards the back. It was a tough watch.

It was the last time Sam Switkowski will stand in the Fremantle rooms as a player, having announced his retirement leading into the finals.

It will be a September to remember for Switkowski, who became a dad to Savannah early in the month, despite the defeat.

“I think we all know footy can be cruel like that, but I would still rather that the way the game played out and have that sort of game than have lost by ten goals, or so forth,” Switkowski said.

“It’s a little bit hard to … get over the disappointment and devastation of it. But like I said, I’m just so proud that everyone gave it their all today and we played the type of footy we’ve played all year to give us our best chance.

“I haven’t been in this position before, clearly. This is all new. A grand final loss. My career is at an end. But I’m just so proud to have played for nine years at this club. We’ll see how the next short period of time goes, I suppose, moving on.

“There’s been a lot going on, a lot going on, and I feel so lucky to be a dad now and I can’t wait to get there and see my wife and my son. It’s a great perspective to have but (there is) a mixture of emotions and a lot going on in the last couple of weeks.”

There is another truth about seasons ending. Teams change. Players and others move on. Watching on from the corner as he consoled Sean Darcy, the ruckman who did not play, was assistant coach Jaymie Graham, who now bids for the Kangaroos job.

As dual-Browlow Medallist Nat Fyfe entered the rooms and began to embrace the handful of players left in the rooms just on an hour after their moment of immortality was wrenched from their grip, Andrew Brayshaw spoke about the future.

The star midfielder, who noted the first Dockers to win a premiership will be considered immortals, noted there are no guarantees in football, stating his brother Angus played in one grand final and never made it back for a second.

But he hopes that there is a resilience amid this group that, as devastating as the defeat was, they can rebound in 2027 and beyond.

“I know how proud (my family) are of me and of the group and I’ve said it before, but if you want to put yourself in a position to win it all, you’ve got to be able to open yourself up to feel this disappointment and this heartache,” Brayshaw said.

“It was an arm wrestle. I mean, the whole game, to be honest, was an arm wrestle. I’m sure the fans and spectators watching would have thought that was just an honest game of footy, that it was a seesawing affair and in the end it swung their way late.

“But no, I couldn’t be more proud of how we just kept playing to win, kept trying to take it on, but ultimately came up short.”

The message from Longmuir, he said, was that the Dockers should be proud. But he has no doubt the result will burn intensely. Those who have lost a grand final said they struggle to put it behind them. It is the hardest loss to swallow.

“(The message was about) just how proud JL was of the group, the staff, the coaches, the players, but (also) how disappointed we all are,” Brayshaw said.

“It should set us up for the future. He briefly spoke about Switta retiring and he said he loves everyone in the room and couldn’t be more proud of the group. And he knows that we’ll be back one day and we can go one step further.”

Anyone who was in the rooms afterwards would hope the same. When that premiership finally comes, it will be even sweeter.