After The Game With Snaps Truly - Rd 10 2025 V GWS Giants

To be honest, I wasn’t sure how much appetite I had for this one.

If rumours were true and Luke Jackson wanted to go back to Melbourne so his girlfriend could enjoy a more sophisticated WAG experience than staring at a sun setting over a Western ocean every evening and listening to locals say with dreary self-congratulation, ‘Why would you want to be anywhere else?’ – so be it.

Truth be told, I didn’t have much appetite for anything really.

Early in the week I broke a tooth. Eating toast.

Toast! Is there is a more brittle bone barometer of human decline? Or is that delicious misery still waiting for me around the corner? Answers on a postcard please.

Anyway, tomorrow my dentist will be able to book his next ski holiday to Val-d’Isère.

Then of course, there was the depressing news the Fascist Orange Grifter is to be given a new 747 from the Qatari government as a replacement for Air Force One, and – keep it when he leaves office. Watching the Qatari Prime Minister describe it as just ‘business between governments’ rather than a monstrous bribe, was frankly disheartening.

I realise now I can probably never visit the United States again; because even the most cursory glance of my social media history might suggest I at least smiled in acknowledgement when former FBI Director James Comey so cleverly arranged seas shells into a possible presidential death threat.

And I was so damn proud when Bruce Springsteen dared reveal the true nature of the Fascist Orange Grifter at a concert in Manchester, only for his subject to warn him about what consequences might await when he returns home.

Anyway, I know some of you are thinking, just write about the bloody footy Snaps. Get over yerself.

Fair enough.

GWS is a good football team that often plays to only a half full stadium of the mildly interested.

Each home game is announced with the rather chilling sound of a siren – presumably a warning of the soon to arrive tsunami of quick ball movement that so characterises the GWS game. I know, as a concept it sucks, no matter how often Dwayne Russell says with glee “Here comes the tsunami!” As if that’s a good thing. Run children!

Today though it loomed more as a warning for fans of all persuasions to move to higher ground or perhaps any other ground. This wouldn’t be pretty.

But it was sure pretty enough.

Walyalup wasn’t expected to win.

I have no expectations now anyway. So, it was entirely reasonable that the Dockers should produce such a solid four quarter effort of strong clearance work, excellent forward thrusts – yes, many of them still went begging – and the welcome return of defensive cohesion and run.

It was the kind of performance that has fans scratching their heads and saying “If only …?” or “Where the hell has that been?” But asking such questions and expecting an answer of meaning or clarity is a pointless exercise.

Walyalup just are. And sometimes we are not. No more questions Grasshopper.

I won’t go blow for blow, but we all saw the brilliance of Shai Bolton. He kicked three goals himself and was involved in ten scoring opportunities. We look better with him running through the middle. He possesses a very intuitive and rare footy IQ.

We also looked better with Luke Jackson offering us first use of the ball. Fair play to Big Boy Darcy, the footy Gods are not being kind to him, but right now Freo looks better without him, particularly with Patrick Voss and his new found and dangerous-to-all-comers enthusiasm for being a backup ruckman and trying to collect his own tap.

Freddy played his best game of the season and looked engaged and creative every time Freo went forward and it was good to see Amiss regain some poise and Murphy Reid get to show how much of it he has, in that still slight frame.

Not sure what happened to the home side. I know they were missing a few, but this was a listless performance from a team that beat Geelong down at the Cattery the week before.
The problem of course, when you start to obsess about your own team’s failings, is that you assume they are far worse than anyone else’s. Look at Essendon a few hours later, they were as obsequious and obliging to a bully (dog) as the Qatari Prime Minister.

I guess sometimes we have to lift our eyes from our own gloomy obsessions to see there is yet another beautiful Western sunset beckoning.

By next weekend I will have a porcelain crown holding my smile together, Luke Jackson’s girlfriend will tell him “I quite like it here”, and Freo will beat Port to keep the season alive.

Glory days indeed.

Yours Truly,

Snaps Truly.

* By our multi-talented and amazingly insightful footy scribe, SNAPS TRULY. Snaps has seen and done it all. He may or may not have been a fringe player at Fremantle. Don’t miss Snaps’ report after each Freo Dockers match here on the Shipping News throughout the 2025 season.

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