Fremantle Dockers coach Justin Longmuir pleased with response from his workforce towards Adelaide Crows | USAEMALL.com

Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir hopes his team can use its strong response to their loss to Melbourne as a launching pad for the rest of the season after beating Adelaide by 18 points on Friday night.

The Dockers had a tough week under the spotlight after losing to the previously winless Demons but they attacked their Anzac Day game with enormous intensity, led by 42 points at three quarter time and won 12.13 (85) to 9.13 (67).

Andrew Brayshaw led the way to win the Arthur Leggett Medal but Longmuir said the desperation from the entire team had been at the level he demanded and set the standard for the future.

“We had a good week. They had a steely resolve in the warm up. They were really determined to bounce back. It was great to see us jump into the game like that. It was a really solid performance. It was a performance we can build off,” he said.

“That wasn’t the finished product. There were some things in the last quarter we’d love to have back, especially with ball in hand.

“But the way we defended the ground – pressure was probably at its best level of the year. I thought our energy in the contest with second and third efforts was somewhere where it needs to be.

“We talk trademark and playing for the team and those sorts of things. That was back tonight. We saw some desperate acts to save goals, save marks inside 50 and tidy up our work. That was somewhere near the level we need.”

Ruckman Sean Darcy was a prime example of a player who responded to a poor game against Melbourne. Darcy won 36 hit outs and five clearances after being comprehensively beaten by Max Gawn last week.

He is likely to be joined by Luke Jackson for Friday night’s clash with St Kilda at Marvel Stadium.

Playing his third game back from an injury interrupted pre-season, Longmuir said Darcy had shown what he is capable of.

“He was disappointed but he went to work,” Longmuir said.

“As a football club, we understood that he’d not going to be the finished product. He’s had a long timeoff. He’s put a lot of work in to certain areas of his body to be more resilient.

“It was good to see him bounce back and build his game. He’s only going to get better from that performance. I thought he was instrumental to our start.”