Derby Glory For West Coast

Scott Lockhart reporting for AFANA from Subiaco Oval, Perth. 

The West Coast Eagles have continued their unbeaten start to the season by defeating cross-town rivals Fremantle by 31 points in an intense Western Derby 25 at Subiaco Oval. The Eagles third consecutive win puts them in perfect position to defend their premiership title, especially given they are still without star midfielder Chad Fletcher due to injury and former captain Ben Cousins through an indefinite suspension. Fremantle now find themselves without a win after three rounds, their worst start to a season since coach Chris Connolly took over in 2002, leaving the once premiership favorites near the bottom of the ladder.

Fremantle came into the match after a disappointing start to their season, losing their opening two matches to the lesser rated Port Adelaide and Essendon. They welcomed tough-man Troy Cook back into the team for the match at the expense of Luke Webster who sustained an injury last week. West Coast continued their good form last week to defeat Collingwood in a hard fought contest at Subiaco and came into the match slight favorites with ruckman Dean Cox and forward Ashley Hansen returning to the team after injury.

The opening term saw Mark Seaby start in the ruck for West Coast against towering Fremantle tall Aaron Sandilands, with the returning Cox forced to start on the bench. A strong chest mark from Steven Armstrong near the goal line gave the Eagles the first goal of the match and the momentum following what appeared to be a serious knee injury to Dockers veteran Anthony Grover in the early opening minutes. This was compounded shortly after with yet another hamstring injury to Andrew Browne who had to be helped from the ground. Fremantle captain Mathew Pavlich opened Fremantle’s scoring with a goal from 40 meters out, bringing the scores back level. West Coast continued to gather much of the possession and forward momentum, however were wasteful with their disposal into attack giving their forwards little chance. A goal to Seaby from outside the 50 meter arc followed the first of three 50 meter penalties against the Dockers in the first half, continuing their reputation of playing undisciplined football. Two late quarter goals to West Coast’s Ashley Hansen and Daniel Kerr gave the Eagles a helpful 17 point lead at the first change in a highly intense opening term.

Josh Carr opened the scoring in the second term with a controversial free kick in the goal square to reduce the margin back to 11 points in the early stages of the quarter. However, it was Eagles captain Chris Judd and fellow midfielders Daniel Kerr and Michael Braun that were proving to be the real dangers, continually being involved in contested possession at both ends of the ground. Brent Staker continued to be a thorn for Fremantle after being moved into defense during the early stages of the opening term. Fiery contests between Eagle Tyson Stenglein and Freo’s Josh Carr threatened to boil over as the quarter continued, with three free kicks being paid between the pair in the space of a few minutes. West Coast coach John Worsfold moved full forward Quinten Lynch up the ground and put Seaby into attack while once again running David Wirrapanda between attack and defense. The move appeared to pay off as Wirrapanda goaled after marking freely in attack stretching the Eagles lead back out to a comfortable three goals. A goal from Sandilands at the 19-minute mark reduced this margin back to 12 points, with the match continuing to be full of tight, scrappy contests resulting in poor disposal from both sides. Returning Fremantle tough man Troy Cook was able to bounce through a goal from 60 meters, reducing the Eagles lead once again. However, this was quashed by a late goal from Steven Armstrong who became the only multiple goal kicker in the first half after a snap from 30 meters out. At half time West Coast held a 14 point lead in a match that was far from over.

The second half began with a stunning floating goal from Matt Rosa, which brought the Eagles lead out to 20 points. This was countered by a strong mark and goal from Mathew Carr, which reduced the margin back to 15 points as the intensity and pressure of the match continued to grow. Two goals for West Coast from Lynch and Andrew Embley stretched the lead out to a game high 27 points and gave the Eagles control over the momentum of play. Sloppy and undisciplined football persisted from both sides, resulting in shocking and unprofessional disposal at times. Fremantle continued to come unstuck with their disposal into attack, with Pavlich and Tarrant being the only targets up forward, limiting their scoring ability. A strong mark to Pavlich 30 meters out gave Fremantle a much-needed goal as they tried to halt the Eagles momentum. Fremantle’s Des Headland found himself on report a short time later after a clear strike on Eagle Adam Selwood, leading to a brawl within the Dockers forward line. However, this did nothing to stop Fremantle’s resurgence as they scored two late goals through David Mundy and Tarrant, reducing the Eagles lead to 13 points at the final change and setting up an exciting finish to the Derby.

Fremantle continued their run in the early stages of the final quarter but suffered a major blow after Armstrong scored the first goal of the term for the Eagles as they continued to be able to find men free in attack. As the intensity increased to finals like proportions, Hasleby scored his first goal of the match, producing yet another strong individual Derby performance. A rare goal from Eagle Rowan Jones stretched the lead back out to beyond three as the quarter moved beyond the halfway mark. Two quick goals to the Eagles increased the lead out to 31 points, and seemingly put the match beyond Fremantle’s reach as West Coast continued to leave their opponents behind through their strong running game. Goals to Lynch and Judd had West Coast cruising to a big victory, as Fremantle appeared to be out of breath, now 43 points behind. However, two consolation goals to Josh Carr and Ryan Crowley in the dying minutes brought the margin back to 31points as the match drew to a close.

Next week Fremantle face a season defining encounter when they play Melbourne at the MCG on Sunday. No side has made the finals after losing their first four matches of the season, a shocking statistic for Fremantle who just a few short weeks ago were premiership favorites. West Coast remains at Subiaco Oval for the third week in a row when they face a resurgent Carlton side also on Sunday evening.

Final Score:
WCE:             4.1       6.6        9.11   14.17  (101)
Fremantle:     	 1.2       4.4        8.4    11.4   (70)

Best:
WCE: Braun, Staker, Kerr
Fremantle: Hasleby, Mundy, McPharlin
Goals:
WCE: Armstrong 3, Embley Lynch 2, Judd Kerr Seaby Jones Rosa Hansen Wirrapanda 1.
Fremantle: Pavlich J Carr 2, Hasleby M Carr Cook Crowley Mundy Sandlilands 1.

Umpires: Kennedy, Nicholls, Wenn
Injuries: Grover (knee), Browne (hamstring)
Reports: Headland (striking)
Crowd: 42, 051 at Subiaco Oval, Perth