Four weeks ago I put the question out there on Twitter, "Which interstate side will still look the goods four weeks from now?"
I then listed the upcoming four matches of the Brisbane Lions, Sydney and Fremantle. All three sides were thought of as real contenders at that stage, but we were still waiting on a bit more confirmation.
Fast forward to today and, well, we have our answer.
Fremantle not only beat both of Brisbane and Sydney (on the road, it must be said) but they finished the four week period with a 3-1 record. The only poor performance came in their loss to Collingwood.
The Lions saved face with a win over the Pies in the final weekend, so we can't mark them too harshly. The Swans hit a few injury concerns, Daniel Bradshaw among them, so they have a slight excuse.
But at the end of the day, the Dockers were the clear leaders of this pack and their reward is second spot on the ladder, equal on points with Geelong.
I've already gone into detail about why Fremantle have had a remarkable turn of fortunes, so it's not something I'm going to do again. But I will say one thing.
The Dockers are genuine. This is their St Kilda/Geelong 2004 moment, the year they arrive. In other words, expect them to be a real pest come finals.
Write them off at your peril.
At the very least, don't do a Craig Hutchison and have them down for "10 or 11 wins" - as he did three or so weeks ago.
They are deserving of a lot more respect than that.
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