Premiership forward Jamie Cripps was sent to hospital with a suspected broken ankle as West Coast suffered up to seven injuries on a day of carnage in their 41-point western derby loss to Fremantle.
The Eagles lost captain Luke Shuey (hamstring), All-Australian defender Jeremy McGovern (hamstring) and former Lion Alex Witherden (concussion) in the second quarter alone during Sunday's 16.12 (108) to 9.13 (67) loss in front of 56,090 fans.
The pain continued in the third term as forwards Cripps (broken ankle) and Liam Ryan (head/leg) joined the wounded.
Young gun Campbell Chesser (knee) and forward Oscar Allen (knee) were also troubled by injury woes, but theirs were on the minor end and they were able to play on.
Nevertheless, there were times in the second half when West Coast had no fit players on the bench.
The situation was so dire that a hobbling Ryan was patched up and sent back out onto the field in the final quarter to allow West Coast to have at least one functioning rotation.
Ryan ended up giving away a crucial 50m penalty when he couldn't stand a mark in time, and he was eventually taken back off and sent down to the changerooms for medical treatment.
Remarkably, West Coast defied the setbacks to close to within two points early in the final quarter, before Fremantle found their mojo to boot the final six goals of the match.
"Within a game, no (I've never seen anything like it)," Eagles coach Adam Simpson said of the glut of injuries.
"We're good at coming up with firsts the last couple of years.
"We're not crying poor, we're not complaining. It's just collision and soft tissue combination. But the resilience piece is really important for us.
"The third quarter was one of the better quarters we played in my time here.
"I said to them at three-quarter time that in juniors you don't want to come off. Well, that's happening this quarter."
The injury carnage has the potential to doom West Coast's season.
Shuey punched an advertising banner in frustration after injuring his hamstring in the opening minutes of the second quarter.
The skipper has a history of soft tissue injuries and he appears set for at least a month on the sidelines.
McGovern's tear looked even worse, with the star defender pulling up abruptly and grabbing high up on his left hamstring after following Matt Taberner to a marking contest.
Witherden was left seeing stars after running with the flight of the ball and being accidentally flattened by Dockers midfielder Jaeger O'Meara in an airborne collision.
Cripps had to be carried off by two trainers after his ankle twisted awkwardly under the weight of Dockers defender Alex Pearce.
Ryan landed heavily on his back and neck after soaring high in a marking contest and being accidentally flipped in mid-air.
He was carried off the field by two trainers, before bravely returning for a stint in the last quarter with his left knee heavily strapped.
Simpson coached from the bench in the second half in a bid to keep spirits high.
"In the end, I turned around to provide a bit of support to the players, but there's no one on the bench," Simpson said with a wry smile.
Dockers midfielder Caleb Serong won the Glendinning-Allan medal with 35 possessions, eight clearances, eight tackles and four score assists.
Prized Fremantle recruit Luke Jackson played his best game since crossing to the Dockers, finishing with two goals, three marks, seven tackles, 17 hitouts and 12 disposals.
Michael Walters booted four goals, Sean Darcy tallied 52 hitouts, five clearances and a goal, and Sam Switkowski (21 disposals, two goals) was a revelation in the midfield.
"The third quarter was disappointing, but it's definitely a step forward," Dockers coach Justin Longmuir said.
"It's a win we needed, and it's a performance we can build off."
