Round 1 Preview Claremont vs. East Perth

Claremont open their home-and-away season against East Perth at Medibank Stadium on Saturday afternoon, and will be looking for some early momentum as the team looks to build on its fifth-place finish from 2015.

Ironically, East Perth were responsible for ending Claremont’s season in last year’s elimination final, however, the Tigers have added some new faces for 2016.

Recruits Jye Bolton and Justin Speed have been in promising form over the pre-season as they look to bolster the Tigers’ midfield along with Jared Hardisty who returns to the club after being de-listed by Hawthorn, while Dylan Ross will add some experience to the backline after returning from South Fremantle.

Tom Shanahan and Rowen Powell are a chance to face their former team after leaving the Royals in the summer, while captain Jake Murphy will be looking to build on his second-half performance against Peel Thunder last weekend as he seeks a better run with injury.

East Perth will once again count on the experience of evergreen duo Paul Johnson and Craig Wulff, with Wulff set to become the club’s all-time games record holder when he leads the team out to face the Tigers alongside new co-captain Kyle Anderson.

With so much at stake despite it being the opening round, an early win would have the Tigers well-placed ahead of a bye in round two.

Bounce down is at 2.15pm, following Reserves at 11.30am and Colts at 9am.