Docker Fyfe faces nervous wait over elbow

Fremantle captain Nat Fyfe will be hoping the AFL's match review panel judges his elbow to the face of Eagle Elliot Yeo as accidental.

Fremantle captain Nat Fyfe

Fremantle's Nat Fyfe faces a nervous wait after knocking West Coast's Elliot Yeo with a stray elbow. (AAP)

Fremantle skipper Nat Fyfe faces a nervous wait after knocking Elliot Yeo to the ground with a stray elbow during the Dockers' 41-point loss to West Coast.

Fyfe was facing the opposite way and attempting to wriggle free of Yeo's close checking when he struck the Eagle in the jaw with a swinging arm.

Although the contact seemed accidental, Fyfe will have to wait to see how the AFL's match review panel views the situation.

Fremantle coach Ross Lyon claims he didn't see the incident, but was confident the hit was a "non issue".

"All I know is Nathan is a ball player who cops a lot of attention," Lyon said.

"Sometimes players stay down to milk free kicks."

Fyfe was unusually quiet in the derby, with the Brownlow medallist racking up just 19 disposals and four clearances in the 16.7 (103) to 9.8 (62) loss.

"I think you have to understand he's human," Lyon said of Fyfe.

"When the ball is going into their forward 50 and not coming out it makes it hard for midfielders to get a bit of the ball."

West Coast's fourth straight derby win was welcome news after a week in which they copped heavy criticism following their 50-point loss to Hawthorn at the MCG.

The Eagles led Fremantle by 45 points at halftime and cruised to victory from there.

Josh Kennedy won the Ross Glendinning medal courtesy of his six-goal haul, but the award could have easily gone to defender Jeremy McGovern.

McGovern tallied 22 possessions and 13 marks in a masterful display, while Yeo (32 disposals, 14 marks) was also influential.

Importantly, West Coast won the contested possession count by 20. It was in stark contrast to the previous week against the Hawks, when they lost that key stat by 22 in a performance that riled coach Adam Simpson.

Simpson was happy with the way his team responded against Fremantle.

But he was left to ponder the reasons why his team were so poor at the contests one week, and excellent the next.

"It probably leaves us with more questions than answers of where we are at at the moment," Simpson said ahead of Saturday's clash with the Power in Adelaide.

"I'm really pleased that we responded. But now it's about next week."

West Coast ruckman Nathan Vardy appears set for a stint on the sidelines after hyper=extending his right elbow in a first-quarter marking contest.

Vardy will undergo scans to determine the extent of the damage.

With other ruck options Nic Naitanui, Scott Lycett, and Drew Petrie also nursing injuries, the Eagles may be forced to call upon Fraser McInnes to support Jonathan Giles in the ruck.


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