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Western Bulldogs vs Fremantle — AFL 2026 Round 8

Round 8

Match details

Home & Away
Round 8
Full time
Western Bulldogs
102114
Fremantle
13th
of 18 · index 67Round Health Score (0–100), last 5 rounds. Scores drift down league-wide as the season's injury load builds — read the slope relative to the league, not the level.
Round health
5th
of 18 · index 84Round Health Score (0–100), last 5 rounds. Scores drift down league-wide as the season's injury load builds — read the slope relative to the league, not the level.

Evenly matched on squad health.

Season 10th of 18 · index 36−3vs season
Season 4th of 18 · index 62

Head-to-head

7Ongoing injuries8
2Long-term (LTI)1
8 dDays' rest6 d
3Games in 21 days3
654 kmLast month air km4,256 km
Squad stabilityWBD 2ndFRE 7th of 18

Value-weighted players used — 1st = most churn of key players, 18th = most settled. Weighted by player value (our metric), not raw squad size.

Soft-tissue = the OSIICS muscle/tendon family — the injuries most prone to recurrence (WBD 1, FRE 0).

What do these scores mean?
Round Health
— point-in-time (0–100, 100 = no injury absences), weighting current ongoing absences on a fixed scale comparable across rounds. The league average drifts down as the season's injury load builds, so low late-season numbers are normal.
Season Health
— cumulative season-to-date: value-weighted injury burden, availability and incidence. Load-managed rests are excluded from both.
Fri 1 May · 7:30pm·Marvel Stadium, Melbourne
State
VIC
Surface
Hybrid surface
Roof
Retractable roof
Capacity
56,347

Injuries from this game

What this game cost — players hurt in it, OSIICS-classified, each linked to its injury record.

WBD
  • Laitham Vandermeer
    Moderate
    Hamstring· typically ~2 gamesRight hamstring injury — sustained during WBD vs FRE Round 8 (2026-05-01) at Marvel…
FRE

No injuries reported

Back from injury

Players who returned from injury in this game, each linking to their profile.

WBD
FRE

None returned

Current injuries

Every ongoing injury carried by each squad today (15 across both). Injuries sustained in this game are in the casualty report above.

WBD hold a slight availability edge (8 ongoing injuries to 7); FRE carrying a recurrence.

WBD
  • Sam DarcyFWD
    LTI

    KneeACL Tear

    Long-term
    Injury-proneDue Mar 15, 2027
  • Ankle/FootHigh Ankle Sprain

    Moderate
    Injury-proneDue Aug 17
  • ShoulderShoulder Fracture

    Moderate
    Due Aug 26
  • Laitham VandermeerFWD
    Recurrence

    HamstringHamstring Strain

    Minor
    FragileDue Jul 25
  • Chest/TorsoBack Injury (General)

    Minor
    Possible return
    Due this week
  • Wrist/HandHand/Wrist Injury (General)

    Minor
    Possible return
    Due this week
  • Head/NeckConcussion

    Minor
    Possible return
    Injury-proneDue this week

Signals

  • 1recurrence
  • 2awaiting diagnosis
  • 4durability-fragile
  • What they lose: 3 forwards, 2 defenders, 1 midfielder, 1 ruckman

Recurrence flags repeat injuries to the same body region within 24 months.

Injury classifications use the OSIICS system (Orchard Sports Injury and Illness Classification System). © John Orchard — Free to use with acknowledgment.