THE SYDNEY Swans crashed the party of Matthew Pavlich's 350-game milestone with a 90-point thrashing of Fremantle in Sunday's wet and windy clash at Domain Stadium.
Swans midfielder Josh Kennedy tallied 45 disposals and three goals in the 21.11 (137) to 7.5 (47) victory, with the result keeping the Swans in the hunt to finish second.
"He was outstanding," Swans coach John Longmire said.
"He's played some really good games for this footy club, but it would have to be up there with them."
The big win lifted the Swans' percentage to 140.0 to move to within striking distance of Greater Western Sydney (142.0 per cent) in the race for a top-two finish.
The Swans take on Port Adelaide, St Kilda, North Melbourne, and Richmond in the final four rounds, giving them an excellent chance to edge out the Giants and Geelong for second spot.
Longmire said it was one of the Swans' best team performances for the year.
"Our defensive/offensive shape was really positive as far as working together as one," Longmire said.
"It was fantastic really. It was as good as we've done it all year. And I'm happy some of our younger players get some more experience in front of a big crowd away like this. It's fantastic to be able to do that."
Five talking points: Fremantle v Sydney Swans
Fremantle remains mired in 16th place with just three wins to show from 18 games.
"We have some genuine concerns out of this," Fremantle coach Ross Lyon said.
"Pre-season can't come quick enough at the minute."
Defender Zac Dawson is facing the likelihood of a suspension after dishing out a heavy hip-and-shoulder to the face of Swan Jake Lloyd, who lay prone of the ground for more than a minute before recovering to walk to the bench.
Zac Dawson has been reported as he made contact with Jake Lloyd. #AFLFreoSwans https://t.co/7OtQ08pJ7H
— AFL (@AFL) July 31, 2016
The Swans' win was their biggest against Fremantle, eclipsing the 77-point margin they posted in round 13, 2002 at the SCG.
Pavlich was cheered by the 32,401 crowd every time he touched the ball, with the 34-year-old finishing with 15 disposals and two late goals in a hard-working effort.
After the game, David Mundy and Chris Mayne chaired Pavlich off through a guard of honour formed by Fremantle and Sydney Swans players.
But the 34-year-old's milestone will forever be remembered as a dark day for the club, with the Dockers going from minor premiers to easybeats within the space of a year.
The whole stadium cheered Matthew Pavlich on as he kicked a goal in his 350th game. #AFLFreoSwans https://t.co/RuBVY2zEyk
— AFL (@AFL) July 31, 2016
"Milestone games never get you across the line," Lyon said.
"They don't guarantee results. But certainly for Matthew and Lee (Spurr's 100th game) we would have liked a better performance."
"We struggled to get it out of our defence, which has been an issue all year, and it reared its ugly head again.
"I thought their midfield, their big bodies, we were doing a lot of tackles and we wore down, we struggled to sort of stop them, clearly."
Scoring chances were few and far between for Fremantle in the first half, but Pavlich was in the thick of the action for most of them.
Pavlich sharked the ball off the back of a pack and handballed to Matt Taberner for Fremantle's only goal of the first quarter.
And Pavlich produced a bizarre highlight early in the second quarter when he balanced the ball on the back of his head while in congestion before feeding it out for a Mundy goal.
The Swans led by 29 points after a wet and windy first half and that was just the entree.
The third quarter became a feast for the Swans as the rain finally made way for sunshine, with Tom Mitchell booting three of their eight goals for the term as the game turned into a romp.
Josh Kennedy in the wet? Superstar ⭐️ #AFLFreoSwans https://t.co/mB7zl8DDLv
— AFL (@AFL) July 31, 2016
MEDICAL ROOM
Fremantle: The Dockers appeared to escape without injury.
Sydney Swans: Lloyd will need to be monitored during week. Longmire said he was OK but he had not done a concussion test because there was no need for him to come back on in the last quarter.
NEXT UP
The Dockers face West Coast next Sunday in one of the least meaningful Western derbies in recent seasons. The Swans return to the SCG to host Port Adelaide on Saturday afternoon.
FREMANTLE 1.0 3.2 4.3 7.5 (47)
SYDNEY SWANS 3.7 7.7 15.9 21.11 (137)
GOALS
Fremantle: Pavlich 2, Taberner, Mundy, Crozier, Yarran, Weller
Sydney Swans: Heeney 4, Mitchell 3, Kennedy 3, Towers 2, Rohan 2, Richards 2, Franklin 2, Hannebery, Parker, Naismith
BEST
Fremantle: Mundy, Neale, Langdon, Silvagni, Collins
Sydney Swans: Kennedy, Hannebery, Mitchell, Towers, Rampe, Aliir
INJURIES
Fremantle: Nil
Sydney Swans: Jake Lloyd (concussion)
Reports: Zac Dawson reported for rough conduct on Jake Lloyd in the final quarter.
Umpires: Dalgleish, Ryan, Wallace
Official crowd: 32,401 at Domain Stadium