Collingwood champion Nathan Buckley has urged the “character assassination” of Fremantle senior coach Justin Longmuir to cease.
Longmuir, 43, penned a one-year contract extension with the Dockers last week, taking the expiration of his agreement to the end of 2025.
The Dockers claimed their first win of the season in unexpected fashion last Sunday, toppling grand finalist Brisbane at Optus Stadium.
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“After yesterday, can we actually end the character assassination of Justin Longmuir?” asked Buckley on Fox Footy’s On the Couch.
“I personally believe that the way that he has been perceived as a coach, and his personality versus the team’s performance, has been linked in a negative way.”
Melbourne icon Garry Lyon recognised the significance of his colleague’s plea.
“Character assassination is a provocative term. Do you think it’s been that strong?” Lyon asked.
“Absolutely,” Buckley affirmed. “If Fremantle started the season poorly and their offence (was) dour, it would’ve been slated back to ‘Longy’ and the way that he may carry himself in the public forum.”
Buckley spoke glowingly of Longmuir’s character, before claiming he was “set up to fail” by Freo last season amid “personal” criticisms.
“He’s a quality man, he’s a great coach, he’s a relationship-builder, he’s honest and reliable,” Buckley said.
“The players would enjoy his candidness in the inner sanctum, and he presents very differently in the inner sanctum than he does in the media.
“I think he’d been set up to fail, I reckon, going into his last contract year, and we’ve now seen that the club has backed him for another season.
“I just reckon that the team’s failings are always slated back to the senior coach … I think it’s been on a more personal level with the way that he is — a more measured, circumspect individual in the way that he goes about it.”
Lyon chimed in: “You’ve got a history with him. This speaks to you knowing who he is as a person and a coach.”
Longmuir formerly worked at Collingwood under Buckley as his defensive assistant between 2017 and 2019 — a stint that included two finals series and a grand final berth.
Longmuir comfortable with one-year deal | 00:41
“I think it was important to do it (re-sign him),” the Pies icon continued. “They didn’t spruik their pre-season, they were confident with their preparation (for the season).”
Lyon concurred with Buckley’s ultimate sentiment, going on to note positive changes he observed from Fremantle’s promising play in Round 1.
“It’s a really strong defence. We’ll watch. I think, into his fifth year the press is going to come, given the way that they have played in recent times,” Lyon told Fox Footy on Monday evening.
“With this new season that comes along, you want to see something change, whether it’s your team that you barrack for, or opposition teams, and I saw some different stuff from Freo.
“They looked to me to be more aggressive, they looked to me to want to take the corridor, go by hands and go forward harder and more aggressively.”
On Sunday against the Lions, Fremantle was +58% in metres gained by handball and +10% in mark play-on rate, showcasing its ambition with ball in hand.
The Dockers were also +23 in ground-ball differential vs. Brisbane. On average last season, the Dockers were -6.3 in that metric, which ranked second last in the competition.
It’s been a good start for Freo and its newly entrusted coach, as they prepare to travel to play North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
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