Likely domino effect after Freo captain’s devastating injury
Fremantle will likely learn on Monday the full extent of captain Alex Pearce’s Achilles injury, after he went down in the grand final.
And the extent of that injury will not only affect Freo’s hopes of getting back to the grand final, but potentially Tasmania’s inaugural list.
Alex Pearce of the Dockers sits on the bench with ice on his Achilles. Getty Images
Chasing a loose ball on the wing, the key defender fell to the ground out of nowhere with a non-contact injury.
He hobbled from the field, with ice immediately put on his Achilles tendon.
Pearce ultimately was forced to hobble up the dais to make the losing captain’s speech after the Dockers fell apart in the final four minutes against Brisbane.
Fremantle is reportedly hopeful that it is just a partial tear, which would sideline Pearce for six months, rather than a full tear which would be closer to a year.
The former would allow him to return early in the 2027 season, but the latter would put his whole campaign in doubt.
There's a world where the Fremantle captain has played his last game for the club, given he is expected to be one of Tasmania's top targets.
The 31-year-old key defender was born in Devonport and would probably be the Devils’ inaugural captain if he chose to return home.
Freo however is confident he will re-sign and finish his career as a one-club player, but they won’t be able to match the money coming from Tassie.
The question now is whether the Devils re-think their interest for Pearce following the devastating injury on the AFL’s grandest stage.
Pearce has battled injuries across his whole career, including a broken leg that cost him nearly 18 months and a broken ankle. Since joining the club in 2014, he has played 161 games. In the same time frame, Western Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli, who was selected in the same draft, has played 282.
Given he will be 33 during the 2028 season, and coming off a significant Achilles injury, he may not have much footy left in him either.
Fremantle suffered potentially the most heartbreaking grand final loss in history, and that’s before factoring in the horrific injury to their captain.
Alex Pearce was on crutches after the game. AFL Photos
They will be left wondering if the capitulation would have occurred if their leader and defensive anchor was out there.
But it has also left Pearce in a difficult predicament, given Tassie’s looming interest and his likely desire to help pick the Dockers off the canvas and continue pursuing the club’s first premiership.
He has a big decision to make about 2028, regardless of whether he plays any footy for the Dockers in 2027.
