Round 1 Men’s Recap

It was a thrilling start to the Sullivan Logistics WAFL season on Saturday afternoon, with Subiaco losing a closely fought battle with co-tenants East Perth at Sullivan Logistics Stadium.

The intense war of attrition was defined by the sheer closeness of the contest. Both clubs had exactly 20 scoring shots, the margin was no greater than 3 points at any of the breaks, and after a third term where both sides scored exactly 3.2.20, total possession was almost exactly split equally between them.

It was only in the fourth term that the game truly opened up, with the Royals controlling the quarter to secure a hard-earned 15-point victory.

“We worked hard on our ability to open the ground and connect with each other, and when we executed on this our ball movement flowed and were able to control the game,” Coach Beau Wardman said after the match.

“East Perth applied a strong contest early in the second and put on 4 goals to open the margin. We could have folded at this time, however our resilience and shift in momentum was strong enough to pull the scoreboard back before half time.”

“We showed the fight required in patches, to win these games we need to do it for longer.”

Wardman pointed to Josh Robbins, who secured 7 tackles, as a major part of the backline’s successes during the match, while Greg Clark was a vital tool for driving the game forward with 11 inside 50 entries. Jack Mayo also worked hard around the ground, collecting 24 disposals and filling in for the ruck when Jacob Wagenknecht went down with injury.

The spotlight, however, isn’t just on Subiaco’s veterans.

“Our debutants did a good job and will all be better for the run. No doubt they would have had some nerves,” Wardman said.

“Archer May presented well all game; his contested marking strength and repeat efforts were a highlight, and Jarrod Richards was at his competitive best across half back.”

With some important learnings taken on, the focus is now on the Round 2 clash with West Coast: under lights on Friday night at Mineral Resources Park.

“Heading into this week it’s about finishing our work and capitalising on momentum,” Wardman explained.

“We take confidence in our connection and evidence of what we are training. We’re going to maintain our disciplines and execution of fundamentals, all in our control.”

While the Colts side faced a similar fate to the League side, suffering a 21-point loss to East Perth earlier in the day, the Reserves walked away with a convincing 53-point victory over the Royals.