Travelling to Perth is no easy task, especially when every Victorian club that has visited Optus Stadium this season has lost, making the joy amongst the players evident post-match.
North’s stars believe the win was the perfect reward for the preparation the side put in ahead of their sole trip to the West this season.
Todd Goldstein - ABC Grandstand
“The maturity of this group has really shown.
“The gave us the option to fly up two days before for whoever wanted to, and I think we had 16 players that jumped on board on their day off and get acclimatised and get their sleeping patterns right.
“It’s those little differences that show how committed this group is, and I think that’s all that Brad wanted to see.”
Ben Jacobs - 6PR
“Obviously it is a big trip coming to Perth, and I think it was a good time to show what we’ve actually got, and show that we’re actually contenders to play finals this year.”
Kayne Turner - North Media
“We knew no Victorian team had won here before, so we really set the goal of wanting to become that first team.
“It’s just a really good feeling around the club at the moment.
“The VFL had a win, now the AFL, so it’s been a really good weekend for us.”
Jarrad Waite - Fox Footy
“It’s a massive win for the group.
“We know they play this ground pretty well and it’s our first time on it, but it feels pretty familiar to us given it’s similar to the MCG.
“It was good to get a win for Goldy’s 200th, but just another good win on the road.”
Once again, North’s backline proved that it was up to the task, restricting Fremantle to just 58 points, maintaining its status as the competition's stingiest side.
Todd Goldstein - ABC Grandstand
“We’re defending really well as a team this year, and I think it’s about time that blokes like Scott Thompson and especially Robbie Tarrant get the cudos that they deserve.
“Robbie’s been pretty stiff not to get in the All-Australian side the past couple of years, but we’ve got great faith in them.
“I think as a team we’re defending better, which means that they can come forward with confidence knowing that we’re coming back to support them.”
Jarrad Waite - Fox Footy
“We had Tazz, Turbo, and even Sam Durdin who came in today and played his role.
“It’s great that they’re standing up, but it’s an overall defensive effort from the team.
“It’s going well, and will make that trip home a bit easier."
Once again, the midfield for the visitors was outstanding, and showed its willingness to win the contested ball.
Plus, the battle between Nat Fyfe and Ben Jacobs lived-up to the lofty pre-game expectations.
Ben Jacobs - 6PR
“I tried to get to Fyfe when I could, but obviously he rolls forward a bit and he plays in the ruck and is such a hard person to get a hold of because he is so versatile, but at times I had to go to the most dangerous and just slug it out in the rain.
“We actually reward the guys off the ball and in meetings, we’re never looking at the guys who get the most of the ball or kick goals, but it’s the guys who are running off the ball.
“Guys like Billy Hartung, Kayne Turner and these guys who really try and make those defenders accountable are the guys that are leading the way in our team at the moment.”
Kayne Turner - North Media
“I knew we were on top as a team.
“I knew I was getting a bit more of the ball than I usually would in some of the other games, but it helps when blokes like Higgo, Cunners and Goldy are on top in the middle.
“It makes a massive difference for all of us forwards, not just myself because we’re all more involved.”
The forward’s were also electric, but some inaccurate kicking early put North behind the eightball in the opening term.
Despite the tough start, the team knew if they could find its kicking boots, the goals would come.
Kayne Turner - North Media
“It was good to kick a goal.
“I missed a few chances earlier, so it was nice to get one away, and get that off the shoulders.”
“We knew we had a lot of the play early and we knew eventually that we’d take our chances.
“It was more just about still generating those opportunities to get the goals more than anything.”
Ben Jacobs - 6PR
“It’s obviously hard when you start the game like that away from home, and you wonder if (the misses) are going to cost you later in the game, but we knew we were getting inside 50 twice as much as Fremantle were, and we knew we had to keep chipping away and it would fall our way.”
Jarrad Waite - Fox Footy
“We played a pretty shocking first quarter and could have really capitalised early, but we did pretty well to come back and get a pretty decent win in the end.”
The rain made it a tough day for the forwards, but both Ben Brown and Jarrad Waite were able to prevail, combining for five goals in a tight contest, which is a testament to the duo’s workrate.
Ben Jacobs - 6PR
“He’s playing some great footy at the moment.
“With Benny Brown getting a lot of attention, he can play a bit more freely and go for his marks.
“He’s been great for us and he’s got the heart of a 20-year-old, so he fits in well.”
Jarrad Waite - Fox Footy
“I’m feeling pretty good at the moment.
“It’s just week-by-week for me, we’ve got a bye in a couple of weeks so I’m looking forward to that.”
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