Subiaco Completes Perfect 18-0 Home & Away Season

Subiaco has completed a perfect 18-0 home and away season, defeating Perth by 72 points in their final game before the 2018 WAFL finals.

 

Subiaco now turns its focus to finals action, looking to make amends for two heart-breaking Grand Final defeats in 2016 and 2017.  

 

Outside of conceding the first goal of the game, and three straight goals in the third quarter, Subiaco were never seriously threatened in Round 21 against Perth, as they posted their eighth win of greater than 70 points for the year.

 

The win was set-up again by a stellar defensive effort, with the midfield working well to control the ball and the defence keeping Perth to just two scoring shots in the first half and just 10 for the game.

 

Up front Subiaco also had the game’s most dangerous forwards, with Ben Sokol kicking five goals and Kyle Halligan, Clancy Wheeler and Lachlan Delahunty all looking lively.

 

After missing a series of chances in front of goal in the first half, Subiaco was far more accurate in the second, kicking 10.1 after the long break.

 

Kyal Horsley finished off an outstanding home and away season with 30 possessions to lead Subiaco, with Josh Deluca also collecting 30 possessions.

 

The other two key members of Subiaco’s midfield picked up 28 possessions with Chris Phelan and Leigh Kitchin also having important contributions.

 

Down back, Jacob Miller had a second outstanding game after being recalled to league footy, driving Subiaco forward on a number of occasions, while Jordan Lockyer, Aaron Heal and Angus Litherland all had the better of their one on one battles in the Perth forward half.

 

It was a fitting end to arguably the greatest home and away season in Subiaco history, with the day ending with a number of records being broken.

 

Subiaco has a first round bye in finals, before taking on the winner of the South Fremantle and West Perth Qualifying Final, on Sunday September 9^th in the second semi final, with that winner to be the first team into the 2018 WAFL Grand Final.

 

 

GAME CHANGERS

 

HISTORY MAKING DAY

It was one for the history books on Saturday at Leederville. Subiaco finished with its highest ever percentage for a home and away season, 221%, beating the 218% of 1912. Subiaco conceded 51.44 points per game for the home and away season, their best defensive effort since conceding 51.13, exactly 100 years ago in 1918. Subiaco became just the third team to go unbeaten through a home and away season, with the Lions joining the Royals of 1944 and Sharks of 1946. Finally, Subiaco became just the second team to finish with minor premiers in all three WAFL grades, joining the 1967 Royals in the record books.

 

THE ONE LOSS TREND ENDS

In an interesting quirk of WAFL history, there have been just three occasions of a team winning all their games bar one. All three occasions belong to Subiaco, in the seasons of 1912, 2008 and 2017. After Saturday, Subiaco joins East Perth and East Fremantle as the only unbeaten teams through a home and away season.

 

CLARKE DOES IT AGAIN IN THE RUCK

Zac Clarke’s incredible second half run in the 2018 WAFL season continued, as the Subiaco big man recorded 50 hit-outs. It was the fourth time in the back half of 2018 that Clarke had achieved that feat. Again Clarke proved to be a threat when resting forward, with two goals taking his season tally to 25.

 

FAB FOUR TUNE UP FOR FINALS

Josh Deluca, Kyal Horsley, Leigh Kitchin and Chris Phelan did as they pleased in the midfield battle on Saturday, combining for 116 possessions to make short work of their Demon opponents. Horsley started the match strongly with 16 first quarter possessions, while Kitchin finished the best of the group in the last. Overall this was the ideal tune up for finals for Subiaco’s important midfield brigade.

 

MAKING THE MOST OF A CHANCE

The defensive group has been the most settled at Subiaco in 2018. Greg Clark has missed two weeks with injury, with his replacement Jacob Miller making the most of a chance. Miller was good against East Fremantle and was exceptional against Perth with his ability to take the game on and penetrating kicking giving an ideal depth to the Subiaco defence. Miller has done everything in his power to be out there when Subiaco run out in the second semi-final in a fortnight.

 

HANDFUL FOR SOKOL

After a tight race all season for Subiaco’s leading goal kicker, Ben Sokol took control with a bag of five in Round 21. It was Sokol’s second bag of five for the year, the other coming all the way back in Round Two. Sokol has 37 goals for the season, a seven goal lead on the surprising second place of Lachlan Delahunty.

 

 

FINAL

SUBIACO         4.3       7.9       12.9     17.10.112

PERTH             1.0       2.0       5.3       6.4.40

 

BEST: Horsley, Deluca, Clarke, Sokol, Miller.

GOALS: Sokol 5; Clarke, Delahunty, Halligan, Wheeler 2; Horsley, Litherland, Phelan, Stevenson 1.