There were the positives with your draftees this season, but then the negatives that come with losing 16 games – what's more prominent in your eyes when you review the season?
I think what people have got to understand, when you make 14 changes to your list, the improvement's not going to come straight away. When you make those changes, you're looking at 30 per cent of your list and those [new] players need time, time to embrace the game physically and mentally.

However, we did expose the majority of those players to the game straight away, which I think should hold us in good stead. A number of the first-yearers played 15 games, 10 games, but unfortunately a lot of our class players had high injury tolls.

When you lose your class players, they're the players that have the ability to bring teammates into the game when other players can't do it.

It was the same result as last year, effectively. We've had two compromised years since I've been coaching. The first we had a lot of retirements happen throughout the course of that year, and the second year a lot of injuries. 

Hopefully the tide's turned and we get a good run with injuries, we have a lot of depth on our list next year, we get the draft right and who knows, we might get a good player in the pre-season as well.

What are the pleasing individual stories to come out of the year?
I think if we go to the experienced side of it first, I think Chris Tarrant, Aaron Sandilands and Matthew Pavlich certainly maintained their standards and their status in the game. Tarrant was probably the exception, going beyond that. I think there would be a lot of journos around that would say whatever they've written over the last couple of years, they would renege on.   

On top of that I think we saw the evolvement of the younger players – (Nick) Suban, (Stephen) Hill, (Matt) de Boer, (Hayden) Ballantyne and the introduction of a Zac Clarke, even though it might have been a little bit premature.

Then the emergence of a kid on the rookie list like (Greg) Broughton. You can even put guys like (Jay) van Berlo, (Clancee) Pearce, (Michael) Walters in, just to give them a taste of what this game's all about and what they need to do going forward.

As a side, how do you think they evolved in the way they play as the year went on?
There wasn’t a lot of chemistry, because there was the introduction of so many new faces in our side. I think the knowledge, understanding they'll have – and hopefully stability – can make everything work.

How far ahead do you allow yourself to look at each line of your side and where players are at in their careers?
Well, that never changes. What I mean by that is some players that don't compromise your side play in a stable position. Some players that look uneasy at times, you need to change. It's about getting the balance of that right. Who would have known after 12 years that Chris Tarrant would go to fullback? There's all of those variables. You have to be able to place your players in the right position and in the right role. You need to find yourself through that situation, and I thought we did this year. I think we found out a lot about our players and what they can and can't do.

In terms of where your key players are at in their careers, how far do you look ahead at where your ruckman is and when you will need to replace him, or your new fullback?
Well, that's list management. You must keep the balance of the players coming up in those key position areas and also in the midfield. It would be fair to say that on a regular basis you're making those decisions or you're developing players to take over.

Those key senior players like Matthew Pavlich, Aaron Sandilands, Luke McPharlin and Roger Hayden, do you still see them as key players in the successful era your building for?
When we made all of those decisions last year we saw our age, a lot of these guys have got three or four years to go in their careers, and it's what we can do underneath that really supports that.

We're going to have to make sure we train them the right way and get them through the rigours of the game. A lot of the things we did this year were to make sure the older guys weren't overtaxed.

In an effort to prolong their careers?
Not at the expense of winning though. I just think that's where the game's going with rotations.

So you still see those senior guys as the core group for success?
Absolutely.

How do you bring the young guys up quick enough?
You back in your development programs, you fast-track the knowledge and understanding of your structure and you back in their ability to learn through the games they've experienced so far and then going to the next level.

Do you think you have enough time to get them to that level?
I think in the next year or two, you'll see some significant progress in what we're doing.

On Sandilands, the expectation on how good he can yet be has probably grown this season. How influential a player do you think he can be?
I think there's still just another chapter in his career to go. And that's dominating all over the ground. I always say to players, 'Don't ever think you can't go beyond what you're doing now'. That's really talking about the best players and them finding out even more about themselves and where they can take their careers. I think there's certainly another chapter in Aaron's career.

The gap between hit-outs and clearances probably moved a step in the right direction for you this season. Was that one of the pleasing aspects of your year?
It was, but it's still a work in progress. We're evolving players through that midfield that are still getting tuition in those areas to specialise in those areas and capitalise more on what Aaron's doing. There were a lot of players that would rotate through there that haven't had a lot of experience through there.

Barry Mitchell's impact as a midfield coach; what has he implemented since crossing over from Hawthorn?
I think he's changed the structure and direction of what we're doing, and that takes time too, by the way. He's given the boys an easy understanding of what's required around the stoppages and how to exploit stoppages.

He came over with that knowledge of the Hawthorn cluster or zone; was it as big a part of your season as you anticipated?
We used that to a certain extent, and Chris Scott was driving that along with some knowledge we had from Barry. I think every team has its moments with the zone. It can work for you, and sometimes it won't work for you. The reality is you have to hold your nerve and back it in. There were times when we fluctuated with that.

Being a competitor and having that drive to always win, how do you subdue disappointment and anger when you have a 6-16 season?
If you get angry you lose direction, so it's no good getting angry. You get frustrated and you deal with it. But that's how you make a team think their way through situations a lot better – you take away the frustration.

We don't get dealt a good hand in the fixture, and that's about to be addressed. Let's not make any excuse for our record on the road, but there must be considerations made for the longest travelling teams, and there isn't.

If you go back and look at percentages of whether a team's had six-day break and they win compared to a seven-day break, the difference is enormous – plus the travel, by the way.

This isn't about me making excuses for a season, but when you carry first-year players – up to eight – the percentages of winning are very minimal. We've actually done a really good job to carry seven young players most times.

I sense the fixture has become an issue for you now. How do you go about getting change?
We take that to the AFL after our review. How does it happen that we play Geelong when they've got [an extra] two days' break and we travel? That's not right. The AFL are trying to make a level playing field through the draft and through the salary cap; well, then do it with the fixture.

The interesting thing is we've got two more interstate clubs joining the competition in the next two years. So effectively we have eight interstate clubs and 10 Victorian clubs. It'll be interesting to see the travel requirements for everyone then, won't it?
You'd expect Melbourne clubs to travel a lot more, but we'll wait and see. We'll nearly be at an even amount of teams Melbourne and interstate. So we'll see if some of those Melbourne teams that get 15 games at the MCG travel six to eight or 10 times during the year. It'll be interesting.

Next season, what are some realistic expectations for Fremantle supporters?
That we're really competitive, we're able to improve our win/loss ratio, and that when we do get defeated, [we] narrow the margin.

Your supporters obviously want wins, but it seems when your young guys stand up like they did this year, they forgive some losses based on the positives they've seen. Do you expect that forgiveness to be there next season?
The word forgiveness is interesting; it's just patience, really. You've got to be able to understand and look through those situations. There's a lot of emphasis put on success and winning by the media. They (fans) get impatient because they read things journalists are writing about or [the media is] asking questions that are negative. I don't want to speak negative, but I have to answer negative questions. When you see a couple of your players win rising star awards and have a real influence in games regularly, that's what I want to talk about.

Is it then fair to say that the positives this season outweighed the negatives for you?
I think so. Like I said to you, when 14 new players come in, where's the improvement going to come from? It's difficult. We haven't gone down the trade for players [route] – we're not doing a band-aid solution here, that's important.

There are a lot of clubs that have done that and then they go 'bang' for a long period of time, and you'll probably see that come next year.

The interesting thing about us is we don't have to make a decision on age. There'll be three to four players from every other club that, through age, will retire. So we catch up already, don't we?

How do you feel like you're placed going into these compromised drafts?
I think we're really well placed to make the most of this draft. The planning of knowing what was coming two years beyond here, I don't think a lot of other clubs have taken the approach that we have. We made significant change to get ready for it.

This may be hard for you to measure, but do you think any other club has prepared for it to the extent Fremantle has?
Not to our extent, no. I think there are clubs that have obviously planned for it, but not to the extent that we have.

What expectations will you feel as coach next year? Will your role move from a development focus to more of a performance emphasis?
I think what you've got to be able to do is coach the team how you want to coach the team, without also having to develop the team.

Do you think you'll be able to hit that point next season?
Game day I will coach the team, but during the week the tutoring and the lecturing and the understanding and rapport you need to have with your playing group, I'll still have that.

There's a perception that behind the guys holding key position posts in your best 22, the big man stocks are a bit thin. Is that a fair comment?
Everyone would have problems on their lists at the moment. We think that the guys you're speaking about [in the best 22] have probably got two to three years left in them. So it's what we do in that transition period with the guys that are coming up underneath them. We're pretty measured in what we do, and we'll make the right decisions on players who can back up those guys.

Do you have a clear philosophy going into the draft?
Get the best player early and then we'll work into the areas that you've been asking me about, key positions and things like that.

Is anyone on your list tradeable for the right deal?
Not anyone, no.

Is there a specific player you need during trade week that you'll pursue?
Not really, no. We just need to add effective players to our playing group.

With Greg Broughton and Matt de Boer onto the main list, where do Clancee Pearce and Jay van Berlo stand? Are they pushing for senior list spots next year?
I think most of our rookie players are going to have the opportunities – we've only got one veteran on our list next year (Antoni Grover), so we've already got an opportunity to elevate a rookie straight away. I'd say the rookies will be amongst it next year.

But no decision has been made on that pair?
Not yet, no.