Ahead of the 2026 flag decider, one club’s not-so-secret recipe for success has spilled over the boundaries of football land and entered the zeitgeist
Mike, I’m seeing a lot of “Wharfie Time” mentions in my feed and it seems to have to do with sport, but I need your help. Where shall we begin?
Perhaps with Fremantle’s rich maritime and dockworker history, which has had a heavy influence on the port city’s AFL club.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, the Dockers will contest this Saturday’s grand final against the Brisbane Lions – aiming to break a longstanding duck and win the club’s first premiership flag.
That explains the “wharfie” thing. But what sort of time do they keep?
It’s nothing to do with Australian Western Standard Time, if that’s what you’re asking. It’s more about a moment during a game when the team may need a lift – usually towards the end of a tight encounter.
The unique activation, used at the Dockers’ home ground of Optus Stadium, features special lighting, ominous bells tolling over the loudspeaker and images of a boat crashing through large waves on the big screen. It’s all supposed to rally the crowd and inspire the team to great feats. A pre-recorded hype-man, if you will.
Ah yes, nothing rallies me to perform physical feats more than an ominous bell. Does it help them win?
The tactic is used sparingly – to retain a sense of mystique and maximise impact – but twice this season it does appear to have worked for the Dockers. Against Hawthorn in round nine, it inspired them to a come-from-behind victory and most recently at a moment in the semi-final against Geelong, with Fremantle holding a narrow eight-point lead, they hung on to close out the game.
This is how it seems to work: the bell tolls, the crowd goes nuts and the Dockers run out winners. Job done.
That’s why there’s controversy about them having it at the grand final …
Debate has said this week about whether it’s a fair move to pull at the title decider against Brisbane, given the game will be played on neutral ground at the MCG with no real “home” side. One point of view is that it could give Fremantle an unfair advantage and that affording one team special dispensation is wrong. Another is that it’s just a bit of harmless fun that creates a better atmosphere.
Do all teams have their own rallying cry, or is this just a Dockers thing?
The specifics of Wharfie Time are unique to the Dockers; the Lions rely on more traditional motivational tools, such as organic crowd support or a coach’s pep talk. But Brisbane do have goal songs, which will be allowed again this Saturday. (There was a John Denver overload during last year’s grand final with star forward Charlie Cameron kicking four goals, each followed by Take Me Home, Country Roads. Logan Morris has Kylie Minogue’s On A Night Like This, which is fitting, given the pop icon is headlining this year’s pre-game entertainment.)
OK I just followed that link and found the most deranged playlist of all time. What’s the AFL saying about Wharfie Time?
They are undecided whether it will be used at the MCG. Despite some reports suggesting the practice would be outlawed for the grand final, AFL chief executive, Andew Dillon, has indicated they’re still working through the issue.
“How those goal celebrations play out and the potential for Wharfie Time, we’ve got to dot some Is and cross some Ts there,” he said. “If we have [goal songs] for the Brisbane Lions, which has worked well, then, what’s the Fremantle equivalent, and how does that play out?”
So who gets to decide when it’s Wharfie Time on Saturday?
Exactly who holds the – or presses the button – remains a mystery. Football journalist Caroline Wilson has said the “sole controller” of the button is Fremantle’s chief executive, Simon Garlick, who has a direct link to whoever is in charge of the scoreboard, but their ruck Mason Cox maintains that is not the case – he reckons it’s someone who works in the club’s admin.