Fremantle forward Bella Smith is hoping the team’s shift to shorter, more precise ball movement is the blueprint for success after the Dockers unleashed it to devastating effect against Collingwood.

After an opening round loss to Port Adelaide, Fremantle were a far-improved outfit in their 20-point win over Collingwood on Sunday and never really looked troubled.

Noticeably over the opening two rounds, the Dockers have switched up the way they look to move the ball.

Having previously leaned into going long down the line, Fremantle have gone the other route and opted for short, sharp kicks out of the defensive 50 and then look to exploit the open space through chains of quick handballs.

While they got caught out against Port, against Collingwood the plan was well-executed and allowed Fremantle to control the match. By the time the Magpies stemmed the bleeding, it was all too late.

Key forward Smith, who kicked three goals and was one of the Dockers’ best, said Collingwood’s decision to sit back and only tentatively press in the forward half helped Fremantle significantly.

“That chip kick is exactly we’re looking for, and their defence were very much a rollback defence, so it allowed those options to come,” Smith told The West Australian.

“We have the skills that when we have a defence like that, I don’t want to say it’s easy to pick through, but they didn’t apply too much pressure on those hit-ups.

“We worked all pre-season on that and not kicking straight long down the line and being a bit more methodical. If we keep doing that, it will take us a long way.”

For a tall forward like Smith, it means not coming too deep and soaking up the space for the midfield instead staying 30-40m away from the ball and being ready to crash packs.

Smith and fellow key forward and new recruit Eden Zanker feasted against Collingwood with five goals between them, a week after the pair struggled to make an impact due to some less than perfect service into the forward 50.

While the delivery inside 50 is still an area Dockers coach Lisa Webb wants to work on, Smith said the midfield’s performance against Collingwood lifted the other areas of their game, with ruck Mim Strom and evergreen veteran Kirara Bowers the most dominant of Fremantle’s engine room cohort.

“They just got ascendancy in the middle, and we reaped the rewards from it. They gave us the service and we did our role and either brought it down or won it, and that’s exactly what we want our footy and our game to be,” Smith said.

Smith said the off-season addition of Zanker, who was the AFLW’s leading goalkicker in 2023, would only help herself improve.

“For one, she takes the best defender, which I know allows me to get off the chain a little bit,” she said.

“But we work together so well. I know she’s going to get the tough defender, but we all try and help each other in the forward line, and we have target players each week, and we just go after them.”