Eardley's commitment, excellence earns Grand Final chanceSaturday, September 23, 2023 - 12:48 PM - by Chris Pike

CAM Eardley deserved to wonder if the chance to play in a WAFL Grand Final would ever eventuate given the way the last decade at East Fremantle has gone, but his commitment, excellence and loyalty will see him get the chance at glory this Sunday.

Eardley came through the ranks at East Fremantle before being drafted to Geelong in 2011 and then he was never going to play anywhere but the Sharks when he returned in 2014.

He quickly became a crucial part of the midfield and was part of that East Fremantle team that made the preliminary final in 2014 and there was every reason for him to think plenty of finals were in his future.

However, that wasn’t the case and despite his continued strong performances firstly as an on-baller and now in recent years becoming one of the very best backmen in the competition with his intercept marking, courage and playmaking ability, wins weren’t that regular.

It wasn’t until last year that East Fremantle returned to the finals but in a lot of ways, what the Sharks have been through in 2022 and 2023 have been the most challenging in terms of what's been thrown at them, but the team has made no excuses.

Now the Sharks have built on that preliminary final appearance of last year by finishing 2023 two games and percentage clear on top of the ladder, beat Peel Thunder in the second semi-final and are preparing to face that same opponent in Sunday's Grand Final at Optus Stadium.

Eardley is 166 games into his WAFL career to already be a life member and fairest and best winner at the Sharks while having played for Western Australia three times and being named in the WAFL Team of the Year squad on three occasions – including in 2023.

However, all that he is worried about now is his first Grand Final appearance as he looks to do everything he can to help the Sharks to a first premiership since 1998.

Feeling ahead of the Grand Final 

After the journey Eardley has been through and how long he's had to wait for this Grand Final opportunity, he can't help but be a little nervous but mostly excited for Sunday as the week unfolds.

"I'm excited more than anything. I'm a little bit nervous but I'm more so just excited for the opportunity," Eardley said.

"So far it's been a pretty normal week and Bill's messaging and the coaches messaging is that it's just another game at least in terms of your preparation. 

"We did get to have a training run at Optus on Friday which is nice, but I think everything has been as normal as it could be throughout the season albeit it's been pretty irregular for us. 

"Obviously Bill has been there before with West Perth and Brad coached a team in Adelaide there, so they know what that messaging has to be in Grand Final week and they probably know better than anyone what the week should look like.

"Our energy's high, training has been a bit of fun while staying serious enough and at the moment, the boys are feeling really good. They've done everything right so far."

Thinking about the dream result

It would be impossible for Eardley to not find himself fast forwarding his thoughts to 6pm on Sunday night and dreaming of what it would feel like to be receiving a premiership medal.

With the decade of dedication he's given East Fremantle since returning from Geelong, there'd be few more deserving players to receive a premiership medal either but he's trying to not let his thoughts get too far ahead of the job that still is at hand.

"You certainly think about it, for sure. But you also try not to let yourself get too far ahead and it's nice to think about winning but it can't be the only thing you think about all week either," Eardley said.

"You just need to try to bring yourself back to reality and be present, and just think about going about your business and treat the game on Sunday like it's any other and respect the opposition. Then hopefully you can celebrate after that if you do all the right things."

Rewarding loyal East Fremantle supporters

It's not unrealistic to expect 20,000 East Fremantle supporters to turn up to Optus Stadium on Sunday with the Sharks in the Grand Final for the first time since 2012 and attempting to win a first premiership since 1998.

Given he's spent a lifetime at East Fremantle and around the Sharks aside from the two years at Geelong after being drafted in 2011, Eardley knows the passion and loyalty of the club's supporters, and hopes to reward them on Sunday.

"They're definitely faithful our supporters and I think having 20,000 of them there on Sunday sounds like a good number. We owe it to them as well because they've toughed out some difficult years with us," he said. 

"It's been 12 years since we've played in a Grand Final and 25 years since we've won one so to be able to repay them putting their faith in us, and putting on a show for them on Sunday is pretty special and something we hope to be able to do."

Using the pain of how last season ended

For so many reasons the performance of East Fremantle in 2022 to play finals for the first time since 2014 and to make the preliminary final despite all the obstacles thrown in their path was terrific.

However, for the Sharks playing group it was seen as a great missed opportunity to bow out in that preliminary final with the loss to Claremont at East Fremantle Oval, and they've used that to build on further in 2023.

It's certainly worked to finish two games and percentage clear on top of the ladder, and to now be in the Grand Final with Eardley confident they can now get the job done come Sunday.

"I think last year we were all pretty disappointed when we bowed out in the prelim because we felt like we were probably the best team in the comp," Eardley said. 

"So I think there was a bit of realisation last year that we underperformed and our team didn’t change much, we got some new recruits and there was a fair bit of confidence going into the season about us being the best team. 

"To get the likes of Brayden Lawler, Harry Marsh and Fraser Turner and other guys coming back, now we're a genuine premiership chance and once we'd won seven, eight, nine in-a-row then we were starting to think that this could be the year for us."

Dealing with so much the last two years

Coming into the 2022 season and East Fremantle hadn’t played in a final since that fateful preliminary final of 2014 that Eardley was part of where the Sharks kicked 7.26 to lose to Subiaco by five points and then see the Lions go on to win the premiership a week later.

The next seven years were tough to stomach and from the 107 games Eardley played in that time, only 28 of them were victories, but along the way nothing deterred him from giving his all and remaining committed to the Sharks.

While on paper the last two seasons look to have been huge turnarounds with a preliminary final appearance in 2022 and now making a Grand Final in 2023, both seasons have seen the Sharks have plenty thrown at them.

They haven’t had a home ground with the redevelopment of East Fremantle Oval and in 2022, they lost Tom Joyce, Luke Strnadica and Hugh Dixon on the eve of the season, Brynn Teakle mid-season and suffered injuries to Blaine Boekhorst, Dillon O'Reilly and Cody Leggett.

Still they made a preliminary final and again 2023 hasn’t been smooth sailing with the unavailability all season of Boekhorst, having training venues and schedules thrown around, and now other off-field distractions in the finals.

Even for the Grand Final match-winning forward Jono Marsh has been ruled out through injury, but nothing has deterred this East Fremantle group and Eardley couldn’t be more proud. 

"It's difficult to put into words but we've just dealt with the circumstances we've been given really. We've had our training schedule thrown all over the place, training locations have kept changing and we've had five or six different ovals," he said. 

"But the messaging from Brad and Bill, and the other coaches has been pretty consistent and that's to control what we can and deal with what we're dealt. We just try to focus on footy and go from there, and it's worked and that's a credit to all of the boys. 

"It's not easy to chop and change training grounds, rock up without changerooms and things like that you usually take for granted. We don't have massage tables or anything, but we have just knuckled down and got on with it, don't complain and just let our footy do the talking. As a group, we've been outstanding doing that."

It's hard to imagine any other coach than Bill Monaghan doing a better job pulling the East Fremantle group together over the last two years despite having what they have thrown their way, or who could have built them back up better than when he took over in 2019.

He already has coached West Perth to the club's most ever wins and for the most number of games on top of the 2013 premiership, but his best feat might have been making the 2018 Grand Final despite the off-field turmoil at the time at the Falcons.

Eardley certainly is glad to be playing under Monaghan, but also gives a lot of credit to his coaching staff and football manager Brad Dodd.

"It's not just Bill either, it's all the coaching staff and Brad Dodd as well, but they've all just allowed us to focus on footy," Eardley said.

"That has been the consistent messaging all year and they've dealt with everything behind the scenes and it might become innate for Bill and the coaches to isolate the players from anything else and just let us focus on footy while they look after everything else."

Having a leader like Matthew Jupp

While the East Fremantle coaching staff has done a tremendous job, nothing beats having outstanding leaders within the playing group and Matthew Jupp has turned himself into the best captain in the competition.

That's why he was selected to lead the WAFL State team for the first time earlier this year and Eardley wouldn’t want anyone else leading the Sharks into a first Grand Final since 2012 especially with how closely he's been able to monitor his personal growth over the years.

"He came and lived with me for three years actually so I might have mellowed him out a little bit and taken away a little bit of that over thinking," Eardley said. 

"It's a little bit fast and loose at my house so it might have done him a bit of good. But seriously, he's always had that leadership potential but it's been his ability to learn and he has almost been like a sponge over the years to keep being able to adapt to new coaches and a new crop of players. 

"That's a testament to his character and having lived with him for three years, I know him pretty well and I am proud of him and am really looking forward to running out with him on Sunday. 

"For us two it's been 10 years since we played in that prelim against Subiaco and kicked our way out of a Grand Final so it's pretty special to get this chance."

Playing Grand Final at Optus Stadium

Sunday's Grand Final will be just the second time that Eardley has played at Optus Stadium and it's the first time that East Fremantle has played at the venue at all.

Eardley's lone appearance was in the 2022 State game for Western Australia against South Australia, but he's glad that the Grand Final will be played on the big stage at the world renowned stadium to add to the occasion.

"It's an interesting one, there's an element of the biggest game of the year should be played at the biggest stadium to make it the epitome of the season, and to have it at Optus Stadium just makes sense," he said.

"In saying that, I watched a little of the Grand Final last year and the atmosphere at Leederville Oval looked electric, but I think our Sharks supporters are going to do us proud and I think the atmosphere at Optus will be just as good."

Getting through a long day on Saturday

Eardley has tried his best to stay busy this week to keep his mind occupied and not to overthink what's to come on Sunday too much, but more than anything he just can't wait for 3.20pm to arrive and to get his first WAFL Grand Final underway.

"I'd prefer it to be on a Saturday to get it over and done with, but having a Monday public holiday does make it a better about it being on Sunday," Eardley said.

"I'll try to keep myself as busy as I can and I'm not sure what that will look like yet, I'll probably just watch the AFL and try to put our game in the back of my mind the best I can.

"I had a couple of days away out outdoor ed camp this week with work which was nice to be able to escape with no phone reception. So I banked two days where I didn’t have to think about it too much and now I just can't wait for Sunday to get here."