Fremantle and Hawthorn to play in first AFL qualifying final
Fremantle Dockers will begin their AFL finals campaign with a match against Hawthorn Hawks in the first qualifying final. The game at Perth Stadium in Perth is scheduled for Thursday, September 3, 2026.
Advantage for the regular-season winner
Fremantle finished the regular season in first place for the second time in its history. As ABC News Australia notes, a victory in this match will give the team a week of rest and the opportunity to play another home game, with a place in the grand final at stake.
In the opening update of its live blog, ABC mentions Justin Longmuir alongside Fremantle and Sam Mitchell alongside Hawthorn. The match is being covered by Andrew McGarry and Dean Bilton.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
A chance for Hawthorn
For Hawthorn, the match in Perth will be an opportunity to secure an away victory and strengthen its position in the finals series. If successful, the team could continue its pursuit of its 14th AFL premiership title.
ABC is running a live text blog of the match and also offers fans the chance to follow statistics in ScoreCentre and listen to the match radio broadcast.
