Almanac Footy: WAFL Preliminary Final Preview – Swan River
The Qualifying Final teams – victor Swan Districts and vanquished Peel Dockers (nee Thunder) – meet again on Sunday. This time on a fast track and warm day (it’s been 25+ for a week) at Swans’ home ground Bassendean (nee Steel Blue) Oval not far from the Swan River.
Bassendean/Midland is working class, light industrial territory in the north east suburbs of Perth where the river tentatively emerges from the Darling Range before becoming a wide tidal estuary closer to the city. Swan Districts fans and players thrive on coming from Struggle Street. The vineyards that line the Upper Swan Valley mingle table grapes with warm climate Shiraz. Adelaide Plains quaffers more than Barossa vintages.
Nic Naitanui, Michael Walters and Chris Yarran grew up on the same street in Swan View and played together in Swans 2007 Colts flag alongside Lewis Jetta, Alex Rance and 7 other AFL draftees. One of them Tony Notte only played 4 games for the Eagles, but will line up in WAFL game 312 at CHB on Sunday.
Peel nominally represent the region around Mandurah an hour south of Perth – a mix of high end canal and coastal homes nestled alongside affordable housing sprawl.
The game promises to be a belter – in both senses of the word. Nouveau riche versus traditional battlers. The spice coming from the 4 week suspension of gun Swans midfielder Aidan Clarke after a minor clash with former Docker Brady Grey in the Qualifying Final. There had been plenty of niggle between the two, and when Clarke kicked OOB on full just before quarter time the frustration boiled over. Push and shove became swung arms with Clarke connecting unfortunately high and Grey predictably dropping like shot to earn 50 metre penalties and a goal for his team.
That is where it would end between local WAFL sides, with the incident happening off camera. What happens on the field stays on the field, unless unusually vicious (this was not). But the Dockers produced grainy behind the goals footage from their training cameras, and Grey went out of his way to testify at the Tribunal (by Skype!) about the “high impact” of the hit. This seemed a bit rich given Grey was not medically assessed and resumed straight after quarter time with no apparent effects. He’ll want to be wearing ear muffs and armour on Sunday. The Can Bar will be baying for revenge.
Sadly this is all part of the erosion of State Leagues around Australia by the corporate predator AFL. If the mooted AFL Reserves competition becomes a reality the AFL only needs Colts to provide draftees, and WAFL/SANFL/VFL/TFL will be starved further to fund expansion and bloated travel costs. The total salary cap for Swans senior list is $245K while the 12 Dockers listed players lining up for Peel earn $3-4M as full time professionals.
Many state league players drop out by 25 for work and family or go the country and “ammos” for cash $’s. You earn more delivering pizzas than playing State League footy. But the resourcing disadvantage is neutered when “them and us” plays out as mercenaries versus besieged volunteers on game day.
WAFL diehards of all persuasions dislike other clubs, but despise the 2 AFL blow-ins. Expect 6,000 fans at Sunday, with maybe even 500 of them barracking for Peel.
In last week’s semi-finals Swans lost by 28 points to minor round premiers East Perth in a game where both teams were evenly matched for disposals and Inside 50’s. Swans were overwhelmed by giant Scott Jones in ruck (82 hitouts!) and our poor kicking causing missed scoring opportunities and plentiful turnovers. Disappointed but not overwhelmed.
In the cut throat Semi in Mandurah, Claremont also kicked inaccurately and squandered a last term lead when they ran out of legs on the big ground to lose by a point (as predicted here last week – donations accepted).
Match Preview – Much as in the Qualifying Final, Swans heart and run versus Peel’s size and talent. Swans have lost two of their best midfielders in Clarke and Jesse Turner (knee), but regain athletic high marking CHF Tom Edwards after a 21 day concussion protocol from a hit in the last minor round game that earned his Perth opponent 2 weeks suspension. Fortunately the Sunday final allows him to play where he couldn’t have on Saturday. It’s a big gain as Swans undersized half forwards failed to compete last week.
Peel lose former GWS and Dockers player Nathan Wilson to report and also looked to have several sore players at the end of a tough final. Dockers midfielder Will Brodie is a prodigious ball getter at WAFL level and had his groin notably iced after the game. How he pulls up will be crucial. Forward Matt Taberner and defender Ethan Hughes were both AFL delisted during the week, and it remains to be seen if this is demotivating or makes them more desperate to earn a contract elsewhere. Giant ruckman Liam Reidy is probably Peel’s biggest asset, and forward Patrick Voss is back after missing the first final.
The counter to Reidys taps is Swans gun midfield led by deserving Sandover Medallist from Monday night in Nik Rokahr, and his partner in crime Jye Chalcraft who both had big games in Swans’ Qualifying Final win. Both are originally from Shepparton and played with Geelong’s VFL side. Nik had been runner up in 2 Magarey Medals in the SANFL, but had the consolation of a Norwood flag in 2022. Hopefully another in 2024.
Swans defence has been rock solid all year and creates a lot of run and overlap. Swans by 17 points as in the Qualifying Final.
Introducing Campbell “Bruce McAvaney Jnr” (aka CJ Coast) – Late in the season my ears were drawn to a 9yo’s loud barracking drowning me out. As someone who takes pride in being the loudest and most obnoxious voice in the Billy Walker Stand, I was immediately drawn to this young talent. Mary the Avenging Eagle (aka Sassy Swan) and I dubbed him “The Commentator” as Campbell brings his IPad and talks non-stop. Campbell and father Damien come to every Swans game and we even inflicted our Eagles members passes on them for the last home game shellacking against Carlton when we were in Margaret River. More encouragingly Campbell has become a sometimes Swans mascot joining in the post match team circle. If I was a Buddhist or dead, I’d believe in reincarnation.
Last week Campbell showed me his “CJ Coast” YouTube page where he cuts up IPad game highlights and packages them with his own graphics and commentary. Sure beats my inked I’s and X’s in old Footy Budgets. Have a look and follow him on YT (before the copyright Thought Police catch up with him). The grumpy, abusive, old man voice you can hear next to him in last week’s video was his father not me – at least that’s what I’m telling the security guards.
Go Swannies
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About Peter Baulderstone
Well summed up Pete. I’m just watching my beloved werribee consisting of tradies and students playing brisbane full of AFL listed players in a preliminary final. The Tigers are looking for a second successive granny after losing last year’s to Gold Coast another fully listed team. Its ludicrous but the AFL have a gun to the club’s heads. It’s their personal development league. Go the Swannies
Thanks for geography lesson Peter. I have always been aware of the Swan Districts club but didn’t know what part of Perth it came from.
I am not a fan of the AFL clubs impacting on the integrity of the WAFL/SANFL finals. I recall one season the Crows pulled the pin on Matt Crouch’s season even though he had played the majority of the year in the SANFL and had been instrumental in them making the finals. I recall it was when he and/or the club were exploring trade options. Now you have a couple of blokes being sacked by the club during the week but having to pull on the boots in a prelim final. Will they be content to do the team thing or will they look for opportunities to fill out their own highlights reel to get another job next year? It puts the lads in a difficult situation.
Good luck Swans.
Plus, unless you were injured or concussed in the incident, you can’t go out of your way to drop a bloke in it at the tribunal. Dog act. Warrants another ‘clip’ this week.
PB unfortunately you nailed it re the extended vfl aka afl thoughts and lack of support to the state leagues
Good luck today ! Go Swans – Go Rokes
Bad day; great season. Peel at their best with 12 AFL listed Dockers players were always going to be too good if they were focussed. They learned to respect us after their QF loss and didn’t give us the outside to run.
Swans made a fast start to kick the first 5 goals with a strong breeze behind; but Peel got going and dominated from quarter time to win by 47 points (lots of junk time goals). Injuries during the game to our running half backs didn’t help, but weren’t remotely the difference.
We need a big ruckman to counter Jones; Eastland; Blakiston or whoever the next AFL draft giant is. Anaesthesia and Intensive Care need “Doc” Blakeley more than us. What a man!
Lots of our players froze and fumbled in their first big elimination final. Our best were all key defenders – Collins; Pasini and nephew Brandon Erceg (10 marks and 17 disposals – huge!) – and you don’t win games from there.
We are well coached and the playing group is young and solid. The club is well run with solid finances and the biggest and best supporter/community base in WA sport.
The players refused to shake Brady Grey’s hand after the game, and an old lady tried to strangle him with her Swans scarf. You get what you give.
East Perth by 4 goals in the GF.
Yes. Interesting read all round. I saw the result on flash score Sunday night. Felt for you PB. Where is the GF played and how many will attend. I assume less due to Peel, or is it more due to anti Peel.
The WAFL Grand Final is at Optus Stadium. Swan Districts are in the Colts GF which is the curtain raiser to the league game. We have won the Reserves (23) and Colts (22) flags in recent years which is part of club’s resurgence.
There were 7,200 people at Bassendean on Sunday. Peel don’t have a big supporter base. The club believed 10,000 would have attended if we’d played East Perth. To be fair to Peel – there were scheduled construction works on the train line on Sunday that made it harder for Mandurah people to get to Bassendean without the hour plus drive.
Last year’s East Fremantle (won easily) V Peel GF drew 27,000 to Optus (second highest in last 20 years). Only exceeded by 30,000 for South Freo V Subiaco in 2021.
The WAFL GF has a real community carnival feel. Particularly when Dockers and Eagles are irrelevant. Lots of my AFL loving mates takes their kids and grandkids to their only WAFL match of the year. There is a lingering sentimental attachment/passing interest in the WAFL for most middle aged people.
I suspect WAFL/SANFL/VFL/TFL is like a superannuation balance when you’re 80 – no longer thriving, but lingering long enough that you think you will expire before it does.
Thanks for your interest, Daryl and other commenters on the WAFL finals pieces.
Carn the Royals.