FREMANTLE coach Mark Harvey praised his side's courageous effort against Essendon, and has told Heath Black and Jeff Farmer to not expect an automatic return.

Fremantle lost Ryley Dunn and Roger Hayden in the first half of Sunday's game at Subiaco Oval to hamstring injuries, and Ryan Crowley to an expected punctured lung in the third, but still fought back from a four-goal deficit late in the game to lose by just four points.

Harvey was relatively pleased with the effort, and Farmer and Black could spend more time in the WAFL after playing for South Fremantle on Saturday.

Farmer kicked five goals and Black had 22 possessions and two goals, but Harvey will reward his well-behaved players first, even though a report about Farmer being out late mid-week angered him.

"Not necessarily, no," Harvey said when asked if Farmer and Black would be back to take on Geelong after the break.

"At some stage, those guys have to wake up to themselves. It would be fair to say that I was unhappy with some of the reporting on Jeff Farmer, because it was totally wrong, but if you want to be undisciplined at this footy club, you are going to pay your penance. Heath was OK, but found himself in too many scrimmages and that won't help him either."

The loss takes Fremantle to a 2-12 record and yet another close defeat that Harvey is confident will help the group be stronger in the long run.

"Our players were off their feet, but to outscore them in the last quarter typified what they are about, and that's how hard they should work for the rest of the season. There were moments like the Byron Schammer collision with (Adam) McPhee that I want them to keep in their game," he said.

"I don’t want them looking at the excuses and make that the priority; it has to hurt that we continually lose by a small margin. You can never accept that, and that's the first thing I will explain to them before going onto other things.

"When things turn around, they will be able to draw upon what we've been through, and in the not-too-distant future this will help the playing group mentally, and they will also understand what is required physically."

The group will have three days off this week, which they will use for different reasons. With former Fremantle player Graham Polak still recovering in hospital in Melbourne after being struck by a tram, good mate Steven Dodd will visit him, with others returning to home states or staying home recharging their batteries.