"A lot of history in a short time" | Michael Barlow on the Dockers (23.09.26)
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Who is Michael Barlow and why is he featured on the Dockers podcast?
Breakfast
with
Gary and Tim.
Well, it's alright.
Ah, well, when the Fremantle Footy Club are in town, we've got a... Well, we haven't got... All over in West Australia are all the former greats, but then this name always comes up. Always. And we're talking about Michael Barlow. He was there when they had a crack at it in 2013, grand final, semi-final, prelim. He's been in a few clubs since. He's doing some coaching now at North Melbourne and he's a great man to talk to. G'day, Mickie.
G'day.
Morning, Gaz, Tim. Yeah, most of them are in the west, but I'll tell you what, they're all on the way over.
Are
they? So the WA greats will be here by either today or tomorrow,
I think. Are they coming en masse? Who just run through? Is Fife coming over? Well, Pavi will probably come down. Mundy, Sandlands.
Yeah, you've named all the heavy hitters. I operated in more of the areas of the Lee Spurs, the Zach Dawson. Oh, yes. Hayden Ballantyne's actually driving over a purple bus with 50 crusted on somewhat enough supporters. They're getting over in all sorts of ways, but Bellas, I think they left Tuesday and
What makes the Fremantle Dockers’ club culture unique compared to other WA teams?
I think he's ready to get here. I think he's had enough of the personnel on the bus.
That's a trip. That is a long trip. When you paint a picture of the Dockers and the Fremantle Football Club for us, the one that you represented over there in WA, what is it about this club? Because they've got their own peculiarities.
Yeah, yes. They're special players. From my own personal experience, I've played seven years and... you walk in and straight away you feel like you're an underdog in the environment. You go to a two-time town where West Coast is the big brother and I arrived in 2010 was my first year and what was that, 15 years into the existence of Freo. I hadn't had a huge amount of success, went to a prelim and maybe another finals campaign prior to that and then we were able to have a period of competitiveness and Been around the mark. Yeah, it's been a long time coming, hasn't it? So it's been a big build. You always feel like you're the underdog. The Sean McManus video earlier in the week, when he was asked to be the presenter of the Cup, I think summed it up really well.
His emotion attached to the place, which is really special to a lot of people, but also a club that's had to fight really hard for its existence in the landscape.
As a mood of a football club, if you can determine this, you're at North Melbourne. Is there a similarity between the two clubs that you can feel, or are they completely unalike?
Yeah, my three years at North, you do feel a similar vibe. I was just speaking to someone about this last night. Yeah, a club like North has been around a lot longer than Freo, but you know, the working class nature, the old shinboner heritage, which you get brought in behind the curtain as to what that means when you get inducted into the club at North.
How did the early years of Fremantle shape the club’s ‘underdog’ identity?
And Freo is fairly similar with, you know, the Docks and the Wharfies and the blue-collar nature of it. So, yeah, the North existed. I know back in the day they had to... Didn't have much in terms of facility and whatnot in Freo's existence in their first couple of years. I know the players themselves had to hook up trailers and put lockers in trailers and relocate from ground to ground across pre-season themselves. So, yeah, a lot of history in a short time at Freo.
Mickey Barlow, we're talking to the former docker who's played in their only other grand final. So, Mickey, tell us, this is an interesting point, I reckon, just the demands of travelling. I was in Perth only a couple of weeks ago, and I know I'm much older now, but having to jump on a kite every second week and come over and play footy and go back, it must have just... I can't work out how Mundy played as many games as he did and those boys that could have survived so long. How punishing is that?
Um... Yeah, it is. Again, it's the reality of it. I think I know the period of time I played and the current day players would be approaching it very similarly. The bonds you build on those trips are incredible.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
Who is Michael Barlow and why is he featured on the Dockers podcast?
0:00–1:11
2
What makes the Fremantle Dockers’ club culture unique compared to other WA teams?
1:11–3:22
3
How did the early years of Fremantle shape the club’s ‘underdog’ identity?
3:22–5:31
4
What challenges do players face travelling between Perth and Melbourne each week?
5:31–7:15
5
How does Michael Barlow compare the vibe of North Melbourne to Fremantle?
7:15–8:29
6
What are Barlow’s coaching ambitions and his path to a head‑coach role?
8:29–9:30
7
Which AFL teams does Barlow predict will win this weekend’s matches?
9:30–10:17
8
Why might North Melbourne prefer a fresh, inexperienced coach like Barlow?
10:17–10:59
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from SEN Breakfast
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