The Three B's | Round 17 League Match Report

The three Bs --- Blackwell, Bradshaw and Brenden --- produced blazing performance to inspire Claremont to a magnificent come-from-behind victory over the second-placed Swan Districts at the Showgrounds on Saturday.

It was the sublime brilliance of Luke Blackwell, the bustling belligerence of brinkman Jack Bradshaw and the awesome brawn of the brutish Brenden Abbott that blunted the opposition in an epic battle.

The three buccaneers stood out like beacons in the barnstorming finish which saw the Tigers convert a 27-point deficit at three-quarter time into a memorable three-point triumph.

And it was the great belief in each other’s ability that played a major role in Claremont not giving in at any stage. This faith has been instilled into the playing group by first-year coach Michael Broadbridge, who is gaining considerable respect for his astute planning, his knowledge of the game and his tactical nous.

The final quarter lasted for a nerve-jangling 33 minutes and 12 seconds and rarely, if ever, in recent years in WAFL or AFL history have I witnessed a midfielder remain on the field for the entire last quarter, simply refusing to take a spell on the interchange bench. That man was Blackwell, blessed with boundless energy, who deserves the highest praise for making light of a painful abdominal injury.

The 27-year-old Blackwell is indeed a footballing maestro who continues to enthral keen observers of the game with his deft skills. He is understated in everything he does. He is undemonstrative and shuns the limelight, but his appetite for the contest knows no bounds. Bare statistics never reveal just how important he is to the side, yet they can never be ignored because of their sheer magnitude.

On Saturday he took five marks, had 21 kicks, made 16 effective handpasses, laid five tackles, gained five clearances from stoppages and got the ball into Claremont’s 50m attacking zone seven times.

The 21-year-old Bradshaw was a livewire performer in a forward pocket where he delighted the fans with his unorthodox genius. After a modest two-kick first quarter he burst into prominence in spectacular style with all four of Claremont’s four goals in the second term. Another goal in the third quarter was followed by his side’s final two goals in the last quarter to give him a career-high tally of seven goals.

The Tigers finished with 14 goals, and the powerful Abbott complemented Bradshaw’s seven with five wonderful goals of his own. A fearless, straight-ahead footballer, the 19-year-old Abbott was like a powerful tornado as he split the Swans defence apart. He marks the ball with assurance and is particularly fast and agile for such a big young man.

Claremont’s victory came as a celebration of the return to league action of captain Jake Murphy, who has overcome the effects of a nagging Achilles tendon injury. Typically, Murphy was at the coalface throughout and was an inspiration with his renowned determination.

Mark Seaby maintained his grand form with a commanding performance in the ruck where he proved the master of Nathan Blakely, gaining 49 hit-outs and being an excellent link man in around-the-ground contests.

The end result was achieved because of a fine team performance with every member of the side making a valuable contribution. The only disappointing aspect of the win was the injury to the left knee sustained by defender John Williams which forced him out of action in the second half and will prevent him from playing in the match against East Fremantle at the Showgrounds this coming Saturday.

Corey Yeo gave a splendid early indication that the Tigers were up and about and prepared to take the fight to the high-flying Swans when he tackled star Swans playmaker Blaine Boekhorst and forced a turnover two minutes after the opening bounce. Yeo completed his assignment superbly as he nullified Boekhorst’s influence and restricted him to a modest nine kicks and seven handpasses while taking six marks, having 15 kicks and making ten effective handpasses. He also applied five tackles and gained eight clearances from stoppages.

Swans were first into stride with 1.1 on the board after three minutes, a poster from Matthew Jukes and a goal from full-forward Ryan Davis. It took Claremont five minutes to hit the scoreboard, with a mark and a behind from Bradshaw following a good passage of play involving Blackwell, Seaby, Mitch McGovern, Ryan Neates and Murphy.

Half-back flanker Matt Davies marked the Swans kick-in and drove the ball forward where Abbott gained possession and booted his first major. Then another inch-perfect pass to a fast-leading Davis gave Swans their second goal. Hugo Breakey had virtually no chance in preventing Davis from gaining possession for his goals. Then it was to the great credit of Breakey that he kept a tight rein on Davis for the rest of the match and prevented him from kicking another goal.

Turnovers on both sides abounded before a Blackwell forward thrust enabled Abbott to snap a goal half way through the quarter. Soon after that Brandon Franz sent the ball to McGovern, whose excellent pass found a leading Abbott. His shot was just off line and the behind levelled the scores.

Neither side scored a goal in the following 11 minutes before a free-kick in a marking duel to Aiden Anderson gave Swans a goal and an eight-point lead at quarter time.

Early in the second term an excellent Blackwell pass found Bradshaw for his first goal and a minute later winger Tom Taylor’s pass was marked by a diving Bradshaw. His shot was off line and again the scores were level.

A Seaby handpass to centre-half-back Jordan McAllister was marked by Abbott. It was another wasted opportunity with Abbott’s kick registering a behind. Ninety seconds later Andrew Foster, Bradshaw and Blackwell combined to get the ball to Abbott, who earned a free-kick in a marking duel with the wily Tallan Ames. Again Abbott’s shot was off line and the Tigers fans groaned.

Bradshaw bobbed up again at the ten-minute mark with a long shot which bounced through for a goal to give the home side a seven-point advantage. The margin was extended to 13 points when Bradshaw got his third goal in the space of nine minutes. A move involving Franz, Tom Ledger, Seaby and Yeo saw Bradshaw, on the right wing, diving forward in a desperate attempt to mark the grubbered kick. He was shoved in the back by Kirk Ugle and then received a 50m penalty.

Claremont attacked relentlessly for the next five minutes, but indecision and turnovers proved costly. Swans hit back with goals to Aaron Elari, Anderson and Tim Geappen which gave them a two-point lead.

But the Tigers were not to be denied. The indefatigable Blackwell gained the clearance at a bounce-down and delivered to Ben Daniher, who handpassed to Bradshaw, who went on to his non-preferred left foot to snap his fourth. It then was Claremont by two points, but another goal to Elari saw the visitors go into the half-time break with a three-point advantage.

The first half had provided non-stop excitement and action. However, Claremont had ruined much of their enterprise and good work with a multitude of turnovers. At the interval Claremont had turned the ball over to the opposition a massive 57 times, while Swans had committed only 29 turnovers.

Swans stretched their lead to 20 points after goals to Ricky Cary, Matt Riggio and Geappen in the opening eight minutes of the third term. Swans had the use of the breeze and the Tigers made some changes, the most significant being switching Trinity Handley from attack to play as a loose man in defence and giving forward McGovern a turn in the ruck.

Eleven minutes into the quarter Seaby started a move which saw Ledger, playing strongly on a wing, booting the ball high to the top of the goal square where Abbott snapped a much-needed goal. Swans replied with goals to Nathan Blakely and Geappen, stretching their lead to 26 points.

Then Murphy gained possession after a boundary throw-in at half-forward. He handpassed to Neates, whose left-foot kick was marked in the left pocket. Bradshaw slotted home his fifth and Swans replied with another to Geappen.

The Tigers were far from dispirited starting the final term 27 points in arrears and they boosted their prospects with two goals in the opening five and a half minutes. Murphy and Neates worked hard to get the ball to hard-running half-back McAllister, who booted the ball to the goal square where the irrepressible Abbott marked five metres out for his fourth goal.

Abbott could not be denied and a couple of minutes later he used his great physical strength to apply a crunching tackle on Boekhorst. This forced a bounce-down and McGovern leapt high to gain the knock down to Murphy, who snapped truly.

About four minutes later Murphy earned a free-kick 50m out and he drove the ball to the goal square where Abbott used his strength to brush aside a couple of opponents before snapping his fifth major to give the Tigers added hope.

A dozen hectic minutes passed before the next goal. Neates gained possession at a boundary throw-in on the left wing and he handballed to Blackwell, who got the ball on to Yeo, whose pass was marked by Seaby in the left pocket, leaving the left-footer on a difficult angle. But Seaby calmly threaded the ball through the big uprights for a goal which reduced the margin to just three points.

Seaby gained the knock at the centre bounce down to Blackwell, who handpassed to Neates. The result of this forward thrust was a rushed behind. There was 24 minutes on the clock when Yeo delivered to Davies, whose long kick went to Bradshaw.

Bradshaw claimed the mark, but the officiating umpire called play-on. So Jack played on and snapped truly with his golden left boot to give Claremont a four-point lead. It was back to the centre where Blackwell got the ball to Foster, whose kick was marked by Bradshaw in a contest against Alex Howard.

Bradshaw’s seventh goal extended the lead to ten points. However, Swans rallied with a goal to Cary, after which they attacked again before being thwarted by Breakey. But again Swans swept forward and a shot from Jarrad Blight fell short before being forced through for a point. Moments later the siren sounded and the Claremont faithful celebrated a marvellous three-point victory.

Details:

Claremont 14.13 (97) beat Swan Districts 14.10 (94)

Scorers---CLAREMONT: J. Bradshaw 7.2; B. Abbott 5.4; J. Murphy, M. Seaby 1.0; A. Foster 0.2; L. Blackwell, T. Handley, A. Hamp 0.1; 2pts forced. SWAN DISTRICTS: T. Geappen 4.0; R. Davis 2.3; R. Cary 2.1; A. Anderson, A. Elari 2.0; N. Blakely 1.12; M. Riggio 1.0; M. Jukes 0.2; R. Riddoch 0.1; 2pts forced.

Best---CLAREMONT: L. Blackwell, J. Bradshaw, B. Abbott, M. Seaby, R. Neates, J. Murphy, C. Yeo, M. Davies, T. ledger, J. McAllister. SWAN DISTRICTS: J. Burnham, A. Elari, T. Notte, M. Jukes, T. Geappen, R. Cary, N. Blakely, C. Blakely, A. Anderson, G. Jetta.