Dockers utility Corey Wagner conceded his side has not provided enough support to Caleb Serong after opponents have tagged him in recent weeks.
It comes as Sydney Swans’ tagger James Jordan held Serong to 11 disposals during the weekend’s 11-point loss, which saw Fremantle tumble out of the top eight.
Before that, St Kilda clamped down on the co-vice captain for three quarters, before shaking the tag and pushing Fremantle over the line in a comeback win.
With spots in finals up for grabs, Wagner says Fremantle will do more to help Serong out.
“We dropped the ball on the weekend. Sebba cops attention every week, and it’s probably the first time he’s ever really got suffocated,” he told SportFM.
“He’s a good player. Good players get attention, and he needs to find his way to fight through those battles. But we didn’t do enough on our end when they had a team target on him.
“It wasn’t good enough, and if it happens again, we’re gonna go after the bloke that goes at him.”
The Dockers were stifled in the contest and unable to have their usual dominance in the area, finishing on 41-32 in clearances for the match.
Although Serong’s tag was a factor in Fremantle’s struggles against Sydney, Wagner says his side cannot rely on him alone.
“It’s a team game and we can’t just rely on one bloke doing it.”
“It’s also our attitude, communication and connection around the stoppage. If it’s not perfect, it gets away from us.
“Being able to deal with the tap not being perfect and playing and hunting the footy after that.
“Numbers-wise, we get our hands on the ball first. It’s the scrap after that where we lose the clearance.
“It’s staying in multiple contests and staying around the ball and winning it after that first little tap.”
Fremantle now sit in ninth on the ladder, their six-game winning streak snapped, and pressure is mounting on coach Justin Longmuir should they fail to make finals again.
Fremantle has a rough fortnight ahead, kicking off with a blockbuster clash against Hawthorn this weekend before heading to Melbourne to play Collingwood.
Wagner is hoping his side will be able to regain their usual advantage in the stoppage against the Hawks.
“The last two congested the stoppages and put a heap of numbers around there,” he said.
“They’re a more chaotic and free-flowing team that just want to run and go quickly the whole time.
“It’d be interesting what they do there at the stoppages and if we can get some dominance there.
“The way they move the ball and create chaos and want to do different things with the X-Factor, we’ll have this stop and watch the corridor.”
IMAGE: Fremantle Dockers