Fremantle defender Heath Chapman says his surprise job on Geelong star Jeremy Cameron last week has helped make him a better player.
With Alex Pearce still sidelined due to a fractured forearm, the task of curbing Cameron was widely tipped to be handed to either Brennan Cox, Josh Draper or Luke Ryan.
But it was Chapman who ended up being given the daunting task, and the 193cm defender aced it.
Cameron kicked the opening goal of the match, but he would finish the day with just 1.2 to his name from 14 disposals.
Chapman racked up 22 disposals and 553m gained in a standout display.
Although Geelong went on to win the match by 11 points, Chapman's shutdown role on Cameron was a major positive to come out of the game for the Dockers.
"Going into the week I got told I had the role on him," Chapman said.
"I love those sorts of challenges. I find them really exciting.
"And to play on one of the game's best players at the moment, I can take a lot out of that game and some of the contests we had.
"I think it will make me a better player at the end of the day."
Fremantle's top-four hopes are on life support after they followed up their one-point loss to Essendon with the defeat to Geelong, marking the fourth and fifth times this year they have lost after leading at three-quarter time.
The Dockers (12-8-1) face third-placed GWS (14-7) at Engie Stadium on Saturday, before finishing off the regular season at home to second-placed Port Adelaide (14-7).
If Fremantle lose both of those matches, they are likely to miss the finals altogether.
Even one more win might not be enough for them to lock in September action.
But facing off against two premiership fancies in the final two rounds is a positive in the eyes of Chapman, who is backing the Dockers to regroup and finish the year strongly.
"To be the best you've got to beat the best," Chapman said.
"It's a great challenge we've got ahead of us.
"The season's definitely not over. We've got to bounce back, get around each other, and go into this week and prepare really well for the Giants."
Former Dockers forward Jesse Hogan looms as one of the key players to stop for Freo this week.
Hogan leads the Coleman Medal race with 61 goals, four ahead of Carlton spearhead Charlie Curnow.
The GWS spearhead has kicked 25 goals in his past six games, each of them resulting in a win for the in-form Giants.
Given his excellent job on Cameron, Chapman is in the mix to take on Hogan.
Fremantle trio Sean Darcy (knee), Michael Walters (hamstring) and Josh Treacy (knee) will undergo fitness tests at training this week to determine their availability, but Pearce has already been ruled out.
