Colts Complete the Hat-trick

By Ken Casellas

Charlie Banfield had the first kick of the match, gaining the clearance at the opening bounce, and Cody Curtin had the final kick of the WAFL colts grand final at Optus Stadium on Sunday when he booted Claremont’s final goal against South Fremantle.

They were two of the stars in Claremont’s magnificent 61-point victory after the Tigers held a one-point advantage going into the second quarter when lesser lights Sam Gallagher and Harper Banfield set the standard for total commitment.

Gallagher and Banfield were rewarded with free-kicks for ferocious tackles in Claremont’s forward zone early in the second quarter. Gallagher’s shot at goal veered off line and registered a behind before Banfield’s kick after his tackle on Max Thomas brought up Claremont’s sixth goal gave the side a 14-point lead.

What was important was that these two tackles exemplified Claremont’s fierce determination against the more favoured Bulldogs, who were outplayed for the rest of the encounter, particularly in the final quarter when Claremont scored eight goals straight and restricted their rivals to a solitary goal.

The win completed a hat-trick for the Tigers, who beat Perth by eleven points in the 2023grand final, and then crushed Swan Districts by 35 points in the 2024 decider. Claremont now hold the record of 19 colts premierships and are showing the way from East Fremantle (11), South Fremantle (nine) and Swan Districts (eight).

It also gave coach Ricki Smith successive premierships in his two years at the helm. He also was an assistant coach to Ben Dyer when Claremont won the 2013 colts grand final against South Fremantle and was assistant to Ash Clancy when the club won the flag in 2023.

Powerful midfielder Charlie Banfield opened proceedings with typical panache, gaining the clearance from the centre bounce and booting the ball deep into attack where Kaleb Germain snapped truly.

The Bulldogs led 4.0 to 3.1 at the 19-minute mark of the first term before a poster from Charlie Watson was followed shortly after with resolute defender Heath Mellody taking a spectacular high mark, and with only a few seconds before the quarter-time siren Charlie Cossom took a mark on the right wing and played on with a handpass to captain Max Hansen-Knarhoi, whose pass was marked brilliantly by Curtin moments before the siren sounded.

Curtin’s shot from 50 metres out after the siren gave him the first of six goals straight from seven kicks — quite remarkably mirroring his 6.0 from seven kicks in the club’s second semi-final win over Subiaco 12 months earlier.

Sunday’s victory gave Curtin, Charlie Banfield, Hansen-Knarhoi, Oscar Willis and Josh Grahame their second colts premiership.

The 18-year-old Banfield was the dominant performer on Sunday, finishing with five marks, 24 kicks, five clearances, nine inside 50s, four tackles and two goals. The powerful midfielder, who was awarded the Mel Whinnen Medal as the best player on the field, is certain to be taken early in this year’s AFL draft, with other Claremont draft prospects expected to include Curtin, Joseph Hopkyns, Heath Mellody, plus a couple of others.

Claremont supporters at Sunday’s grand final would dearly love to see most of the winning side graduate to league ranks, while on the other hand they will farewell the departing players with their best wishes.

Five Claremont 2024 colts premiership players — Hamish Davis (West Coast Eagles), Will Hayes (Collingwood), Hugh Boxshall (St Kilda), Cody Angove (Fremantle) and Aiden Riddle (Fremantle) — were drafted, while 2023 premiership stars Dan Curtin, Joe Fonti and Zane Zakostelsky were snapped up in the draft.

Banfield’s 16-year-old brother Harper also excelled in Sunday’s grand final, but he is too young to be drafted this year. His six marks, 17 kicks, three handpasses, six inside 50s and five tackles ensured a high place in the list of his side’s best players.

Claremont’s defenders performed in grand style, with the tall Hopkyns standing out at half-back with a superb display of marking and astute reading of the play, and Mellody proving a constant stumbling block for the opposition. Ruckman Benji van Rooyen was a solid contributor, while Samson Jennings-Hopkins, Germain, Oscar Willis and Hansen-Knarhoi provided the forwards with a steady stream of opportunities.

Highlights of the second quarter included spectacular high marks in defence from Hopkyns and Harper Banfield. Claremont’s goals in the third quarter were scored by Charlie Banfield (two) and Curtin. The first of Banfield’s goals came when Mellody drove the ball forward and he met with interference in a marking duel and was awarded a free-kick. His second came late in the quarter when he scored with a clever left-foot snap from the left pocket.

The Tigers led by 13 points at three-quarter time before they overwhelmed South Fremantle in the final term with Curtin scoring four goals and Cossom two in the space of two minutes. The other two goals for the quarter came from Jennings-Hopkins and Val Davies.

The first of Curtin’s goals in this term came when he flew to accept a pass from Harper Banfield, holding the ball in a tough congested situation. The next came two minutes later when Jennings-Hopkins passed to him in the goalsquare.

A tremendous pack mark by the 200cm and 98kg Curtin saw him kick another goal, and finally he put his indelible stamp on the match when he contested a boundary throw-in from the left pocket, seized the ball and charged goalwards for his side’s 18TH major.

Details:

Claremont 18.6 (114) beat South Fremantle 8.5 (53)

Scorers—CLAREMONT: C. Curtin 6.0; V. Davies 2.2; C. Banfield, C. Cossom, K. Germain, S. Jennings-Hopkins 2.0; H. Mellody 1.1; H. Banfield 1.0; S. Gallagher, C. Watson 0.1; 1pt forced. SOUTH FREMANTLE: C. Maynard 3.0; T. Longmuir, R. Luke F. Rodriguez 1.1; J. Elliott-Tideman, B. Foster, L. Robinson 1.0; C. Bushe-Jones, C. Luff 0.1.

Best—CLAREMONT: C. Banfield, J. Hopkyns, C. Curtin, H. Mellody, H. Banfield, K. Germain, M. Hansen-Knarhoi, O. Willis, J. Grahame, S. Jennings-Hopkins. SOUTH FREMANTLE: F. Rodriguez, L. Robinson, C. Maynard, T. Longmuir.