1. Ladder positions – and bookmaker odds – suggested that Fremantle were strong favourites going into RAC Derby LV, so the Eagles would need a committed team performance to cause an upset. That came, but the Dockers had the answers when it mattered. Still, with a tackle count in their favour that read 84-63 it was not enough to carry them to victory. The intent was fantastic, but the result just didn’t come.

2. Early in the year the Eagles tried the tactic having Jackson Nelson shadow Fremantle gun midfielder Andrew Brayshaw. When Nelson was promoted to the team for the first time in two months it was reasonable to assume he would play a similar role. And that was how it played out with the defender-turned-tagger going everywhere with Brayshaw. In the first derby of the year the match-up started well but was abandoned by the Eagles coaching staff at half-time. This time they stuck with it and he was among the best holding Brayshaw to just 22 touches.

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Simpson post-match v Dockers

Watch Adam Simpson's press conference after round 22's match against Fremantle

3. The defensive players for the Eagles were high possession winners and while the numbers were impressive it meant the ball lived for long periods in the Fremantle forward half. It was actually in that area for 55 percent of the game, but premiership trio Tom Barrass, Shannon Hurn and Liam Duggan were resolute. They marked strongly, intercepted frequently and made scoring as difficult as possible for their opponents. All three read the game astutely and offered strong rebound.

4. Two of the club’s 2021 draftees who have benefitted from a season ruined initially by COVID and a horrendous run of long-term injuries to senior players have been Brady Hough and Rhett Bazzo. Hough started the year in defence before playing on a wing more recently while Bazzo has played almost exclusively as the third tall defender. Both again were prominent in the derby, winning many important one-on-one contests but also showing a high football IQ.

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Rd 22 highlights v Dockers

The best moments from Saturday night's RAC derby against Fremantle

5. And another youngster, emerging midfielder Xavier O’Neill, further enhanced his reputation with a hard-working performance alongside captain Luke Shuey, Jack Redden and Nelson. O’Neill won the plaudits of Eagles fans with a couple of second efforts including a great chase-down tackle on Fremantle’s Heath Chapman that resulted in a goal. As the Eagles look to evolve their game plan around those traits his efforts would not have gone unnoticed in the coaches box.