Tigers Too Slippery For Sharks | Round 18 Reserves Match Report

Claremont (Reserves) has made it four wins in a row after defeating East Fremantle by 21 points in woeful conditions at the Show Grounds.

With the ground covered in large puddles and heavy mud, the Tigers played the better football as they prevailed 5.7 (37) to 2.4 (16) to join the Sharks on 10 wins for the season.

After torrential rain lashed the ground at the beginning of the match it quickly became apparent that goals would be as rare as hen’s teeth.

As has been the case for the majority of the season, the Tigers had to contend with several changes to the team.

With Tom Willett and Aaron Holt earning promotion to the League side, Sam Fong and Matthew Goyder came into the team that defeated Swans the previous round.

Isaac Baum earned a Reserves’ debut, while Francis Watson played his first game for the year (second overall) after some outstanding form in the Colts.

With Ben Taylor returning to the side, Ryan Lim returned to the Colts after playing consecutive games, while Mitch Andrews (injury), Henry Roberts and Ben Higgs went out of the team.

To round off the changes, Ethan Panizza made his first appearance since round 14 after missing several weeks through injury.

It took 14 minutes for the opening score of the game with Max Bentley snapping a behind after receiving a handball from Jackson Starcevich.

This was followed by a goal to Sam Lamont at the 20-minute mark of the opening term after he kicked truly from 30m on the run.

Jack Richardson had the chance to extend Claremont’s lead just before quarter-time, but could only manage a behind, giving the Tigers an eight-point lead over a scoreless Sharks’ outfit at the first change.

Despite the terrible conditions, Starcevich loomed as the danger man, with the hosts dominating the inside 50m count 15-6 and enjoying 34 more disposals in the opening term.

With the ball replicating a bar of soap, the Tigers also took four more marks than the Sharks, as they looked to build on their lead in the second quarter.

It took 11 minutes for the opening score of the second quarter with Starcevich kicking his first goal after some wonderful efforts from Keegan Knott to give the Tigers a 14-point lead.

The Sharks finally had their first score on the board at the 16-minute mark as Louis Cronan kicked a behind to reduce the margin to 15 points.

A behind to Goyder rounded out the first half, as the Tigers took a 14-point lead into the main break with the slog continuing in atrocious conditions.

It was also the second week in succession that Claremont had kept their opposition goalless in the opening half.

It didn’t take long for the Tigers to hit the ground running in the third term with Starcevich winning a free-kick in the left-forward pocket.

Despite only kicking a behind, the Tigers grabbed their third goal of the game when Darcy Cameron made the most of a 50m penalty to extend the lead to 21 points at the three-minute mark.

Brandon Ellis then kicked the Sharks’ first goal of the game four minutes later as the visitors reduced the margin to 15 points.

The Tigers hit back through a goal to Bentley at the 21-minute mark, before a minor score to Taylor gave the hosts a 22-point lead at the final change.

When Richardson made the most of another 50m penalty at the 12-minute mark of the final term the Tigers had the points in the bag, taking a commanding 27-point lead into the final stages.

A late consolation to Boston Williamson gave the Sharks their second goal, however, the Tigers proved too good on a day that everyone at the venue will remember for a long, long time.

Jack McPhee took out the players’ player award for his outstanding efforts in defence.

Coach, Nigel Wilson admitted the terrible weather had made the game challenging.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen conditions in the WAFL like that,” Wilson said.

“At the start of the day some of our KPI’s for the game were thrown out the window within two minutes of the match starting.

“The downpour changed how the game was going to be played.”

Wilson said the message to the players was simple.

“The instructions to the players was to kick the ball, have a surge mentality and play to the conditions,” Wilson said.

“Our plan was to move the ball quick, and get it into our forward line.”

Wilson was pleased that the players adhered to the game plan.

“Everybody made a contribution and had an impact today,” Wilson said.

“It didn’t matter whether you were a small or tall player.”

The win sees the Tigers pounce on third spot, trailing the Sharks (second) only on percentage.

Claremont have a bye in round 19, before returning to the Show Grounds to face Perth in round 20.

CLAREMONT 1.2 2.3 4.6 5.7 (37)

EAST FREMANTLE 0.0 0.1 1.2 2.4 (16)

GOALS

CLAREMONT: 1 J. STARCEVICH, S. LAMONT, M. BENTLEY, D. CAMERON, J. RICHARDSON

EAST FREMANTLE: 1 B. ELLIS, B. WILLIAMSON

BEST

CLAREMONT: J. MCPHEE, J. RICHARDSON, M. GOYDER, M. BENTLEY, K. YU, S. FONG

EAST FREMANTLE: M. EDWARDS, T. HOOKER, J. DEPANE, J. SCHLEICHER