GREATER Western Sydney has tightened its grip on a top-four finish as spearhead Jesse Hogan returned to haunt his former side in a rollicking nine-point victory over Fremantle at Engie Stadium.

Coleman Medal leader Hogan did the damage with six goals but it was livewire forward Brent Daniels that sparked the Giants to a 15.11 (101) to 14.8 (92) triumph on Saturday afternoon that leaves the Dockers’ finals hopes hanging by a thread.

GIANTS v DOCKERS Full match coverage and stats

The Giants had to withstand a brave Dockers’ challenge but held on to clinch a club record-equalling seventh consecutive win and move closer to sealing a double chance.

The pair of finals hopefuls went blow-for-blow through a gripping final term until Hogan was awarded a critical 50m penalty when Bailey Banfield shoved the Giants’ forward after a mark outside the arc.

Hogan kicked truly from the edge of the goalsquare with less than three minutes remaining to secure the four points and move to 67 majors for the season to equal the Giants’ club record.

The Dockers were within eight points at the last change and gave the Giants a huge scare late but are still to overrun a side in the final term this season and now need other results to go their way to clinch a finals berth.

Daniels stood out as a devastatingly creative forward while booting three goals of his own, and making as much impact further up the ground as he gathered 29 disposals and seven clearances.

The zippy forward booted a clever checkside goal in the opening term then bettered it with a long bomb from the edge of the centre square on the cusp of half-time, and was pivotal in all areas to also finish with 13 tackles.

Tom Green (40 disposals, 13 clearances) was immense around the stoppages and stepped up in the second half, while Stephen Coniglio (24) and Josh Kelly (22) put recent injury concerns behind them to fine-tune for a finals campaign.

Lachie Whitfield continued his stellar form with 26 polished possessions and combined well with Lachie Ash (20) as the duo moved the ball sublimely out of defence.

But the Giants will be sweating on the MRO looking closely at an Ash tackle on Dockers midfielder Hayden Young in the second term.

Fremantle is now on the brink of paying a huge price for not quite getting over the line in three narrow defeats on the trot, and now needs to beat Port Adelaide to keep its finals hopes alive.

Dockers ball magnet Andrew Brayshaw gathered 41 disposals with nine clearances, while Caleb Serong (24, 10) was able to shake the close checking of Toby Bedford and booted two goals while spending long periods forward.

Michael Frederick finished with three goals as Patrick Voss and Sam Sturt both booted two, but the Dockers are now at real risk of finishing with a wasted season that promised much more.

Giants’ half-back to sweat on MRO ahead of crunch clash
GWS was dominant early as its hard-running defenders were able to slingshot the ball out of the back half, but could now be sweating on the availability of crucial cog Lachie Ash for the clash with Western Bulldogs. The MRO is likely to look closely at Ash’s tackle on Hayden Young late in the second term, when the Giants’ half-back brought the Docker to ground heavily with both arms appearing to be pinned. The umpire called for a ball-up and Young was able to play out the match, but with finals places in the top eight still yet to be decided, the Giants will want all their weapons locked and loaded for next week and beyond.

One-two ruck punch keeps Jackson swinging up front
The Dockers backed in their preferred structure for two rucks even with first-choice big man Sean Darcy sidelined, as Liam Reidy was handed a debut in his second season. The 204cm Reidy battled hard around the stoppages against the Giants’ bustling ruck Kieren Briggs and only trailed 41-35 in the hitouts. But perhaps most importantly for the Dockers, the 24-year-old’s presence allowed Luke Jackson to spend more time forward to play as their focal point in the absence of Josh Treacy.

Cheeky Daniels checkside gets Giants humming
GWS livewire Brent Daniels leads the competition for goal assists and was again a huge threat when setting up opportunities against the Dockers while also showing that he can be just as deadly when taking his own shots. After the Dockers worked their way into the contest with three consecutive goals late in the opening term, Daniels found space to receive a handball as he charged into the forward pocket to help keep the Giants’ noses in front. With the angle narrowing sharply as Daniels approached the boundary line, the zippy forward calmly dropped a checkside onto the outside of his right boot to nail a classy goal.

GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY            4.4       6.7       11.9      15.11 (101)
FREMANTLE                                       3.2       8.4       10.7      14.8 (92)

GOALS
Greater Western Sydney: Hogan 6, Daniels 3, Greene 2, Cadman, Jones, Briggs, Ward
Fremantle: Frederick 3, Sturt 2, Voss 2, Serong 2, Fyfe, Jackson, Switkowski, Amiss, Sharp

BEST
Greater Western Sydney: Daniels, Hogan, Green, Coniglio, Whitfield, Kelly, Callaghan
Fremantle: Brayshaw, Serong, Young, Frederick, Ryan, Clark

INJURIES
Greater Western Sydney: Nil
Fremantle: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Greater Western Sydney: Conor Stone (replaced Toby McMullin in the fourth quarter)
Fremantle: Nathan O’Driscoll (replaced Nat Fyfe in the fourth quarter)

Crowd: 10,801 at Engie Stadium