Fremantle’s fortress came under siege from a resolute St Kilda outfit, but the Dockers withstood the assault to run out five-point victors.

And despite missing out on a 3-0 start to the year, the Saints can take encouragement from a game – albeit with straighter kicking – they arguably should have won.

1. Fast-starting Freo makes the job harder

Blake Acres may have got the Saints off to a perfect start to the game, but it was Fremantle who were able to pounce first in the subsequent quarters.

Fremantle booted the first three majors of the second term through Rory Lobb, Ethan Hughes and Matt Taberner to extend their streak to six goals, before Cam McCarthy put the Dockers on the board within the opening minute of the third.

MATCH REPORT: Spirited Saints fall short

At the end of each of these quarters, the Saints trailed by six and five points respectively.

Back-to-back goals to Brandon Matera in the final term continued the pattern and were ultimately enough for Fremantle to hold on.

The Saints certainly had their opportunities to hit the front after peppering the goals in the twilight stages of the third quarter, but the dominance was unable to be fully realised on the scoreboard.

2. Steele grip loosened, but Dockers step up to get the win

It was tipped to be a match-defining contest before the ball was bounced on Sunday.

But the Fyfe v Steele showdown was cut short after a sickening clash of heads between Freo’s skipper and Josh Battle, with Fyfe coming off second best.

The Brownlow medallist racked up 23 disposals (13 contested), six clearances and six tackles prior to his departure compared to Steele’s 22 touches and eight tackles.

SKUNK REFLECTS: Hear from Tim Membrey post-match

With his direct opponent out for the game, Steele finished strongly with seven final quarter disposals (four contested).

But in Fyfe’s absence, Michael Walters stepped up to end his day with 27 disposals and two goals, while Luke Ryan held the up the back half with 32 disposals, 13 marks and nine rebound-50s.

Both Dockers operated at above 90% efficiency for the afternoon.

3. Spirited Saints push hard

Despite not coming away with the four points, the Saints never-say-die attitude and lift in intensity in the third quarter in particular was almost the difference between winning and losing.

St Kilda’s forward half pressure telling, notching up 17 inside-50s against Fremantle’s 10 for the quarter.

Despite losing the clearance count for the term 15-5, St Kilda continued to press and challenge the home side, who in turn fought equally hard without their skipper in tow.

Unfortunately, a 2.5 score-line for the term prevented the spirited visitors from hitting the front.

St Kilda had numerous contributors at ground level which instigated the fightback, with Luke Dunstan and Jack Steele laying eight tackles each.

Seb Ross and Jack Newnes toiled hard through the midfield, despite the Dockers’ ascendancy in the clearances which resulted in 38 points scored.

Jarryn Geary put together a true captain’s performance with 21 disposals, seven marks and four rebound-50s across the half-back line, while Jack Lonie’s spirited burst in the back half of the term thrust the Saints back into the equation.

4. Big Ro goes again

Even with Sean Darcy out of the Dockers’ line-up, Freo boasted some seriously tall timber.

But the Saints found an answer in Rowan Marshall, who rose to the occasion to be among the Saints’ best performers for the second consecutive week.

16 disposals, a career-high 40 hit-outs, six clearances and six tackles cemented Marshall as arguably the visitors’ most important player.

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS: Dockers v Saints

His last outing at Optus Stadium was just as influential, with the big man racking up 22 disposals in the Saints’ loss to the eventual premiers in 2018.

Billy Longer now faces an uphill battle to reclaim the number one ruck mantle, despite his dominant 47-hit-out showing for Sandringham on Friday night.

5. So close...

Jade Gresham’s goal at the 21-minute mark of the final quarter kept St Kilda’s hopes of victory alive.

But it was Billings’ major amid congestion with just eight seconds left on the clock that gave Saints fans a tempting sniff of a mythical 3-0 start to Season 2019.

Fremantle’s David Mundy would play the role of heartbreaker however, winning the final centre clearance after some confusion on the visitors’ behalf with the new 6-6-6 rule.

PLAYER PODCAST: Talking Jack with Jarryn

The combination of Gresham (20 disposals) and Billings (32) across the afternoon almost turned the tide in St Kilda’s favour, with their proficiency through the midfield and two goals apiece coming at pivotal times to keep the Saints in the hunt.

Yet despite battling gallantly all day and challenging the Dockers on their home turf, it wasn’t enough to result in another upset.