CLAREMONT and West Perth locked in the top two spots on the WAFL ladder with wins on Saturday while Subiaco went a long way to securing its finals position as well setting up a classic Fremantle derby this weekend.
Claremont guaranteed its minor premiership by beating Peel Thunder 25.11 (161) to 10.8 (68) at Claremont. West Perth made sure of second spot and a second semi-final clash with the Tigers by beating Swan Districts 13.14 (92) to 7.12 (54) at Steel Blue Oval.
Subiaco moved up into third position on the ladder with a solid win over East Fremantle, winning 13.17 (95) to 8.9 (57) at Medibank Stadium. Perth also had a hard fought 15.12 (102) to 13.8 (86) victory over East Perth at Browne's Stadium.
Click here for all the stats from Round 23 of the WAFL.
THE BIG WINNERS
Subiaco faced the prospect of missing out on playing finals altogether with a loss to East Fremantle on Saturday, but in the end the 38-point victory at home for the Lions all but guarantees a finals appearance.
Not only that, but it also just about secures Subiaco a home first semi-final against either East or South Fremantle as well if the Lions are able to beat Peel Thunder at Bendigo Bank Stadium on Saturday.
That will mean that Subiaco would have played in each finals series that has taken place since 1997 aside from the rare absence last season.
Since losing to Peel, Perth and Subiaco between Rounds 10-12, Subiaco has now won eight of its last nine games to be the in-form team of the competition and a definite chance of having a big impact come finals time.
THE BIG LOSERS
East Fremantle had been in strong form leading into Saturday's clash with Subiaco having won its last four games against East Perth, Swan Districts, West Perth and Claremont.
However, the 38-point loss to the Lions leaves the Sharks needing to beat South Fremantle this Saturday at Fremantle Oval in order to take part in finals action for the second straight season.
It also appears that East Fremantle will not be able to call upon any AFL help with Koby Stevens injured in Saturday's clash, and Jonathon Griffin ruled out for the rest of the season and Chris Masten and Rhys Palmer to still play for West Coast and Fremantle this weekend.
THE SHINING LIGHTS
Claremont put in a dominant display to beat Peel by 93 points at Claremont Oval with Beau Wilkes and Chad Jones sending a scare into opposition defences they will take on come finals time by kicking five goals apiece.
Luke Blackwell (pictured) picked up a massive 45 possessions and kicked a goal for the Tigers. Tom Swift collected 36 disposals and kicked two goals, Jake Murphy had it 28 times and booted two goals and Jack Bradshaw continued his rapid progression with 26 possessions and three goals.
Brett Jones also had 26 disposals, Ian Richardson 26, Andrew Browne 24, Kane Mitchell 24, Trinity Handley 22, Tom Lee 22 and debutant Marley Williams 22. Andrew Foster and Alroy Gilligan also booted two goals.
Peel captain Brendon Jones did well with 25 possessions, eight tackles and a goal. Jordan Jones also worked hard for 20 disposals and two goals with Matt Brown gathering 18 touches and kicking a goal.
Kristin Thornton might have only had 14 disposals, but worked hard for 11 tackles and kicked two goals.
West Perth captain Jason Salecic put in a superb performance for the Falcons in the win over Swan Districts finishing with 30 possessions, 10 marks, six entries inside-50 and a goal.
Josh Pearce did well with 27 disposals and 14 marks in his 151st game while Dustin Burns (pictured) was terrific in defence as well with 22 possessions in his 150th appearance. Dan Hunt was superb holding Ash Hansen goalless while Luke Tedesco and Dion Fleay made up a superb West Perth defence.
Mark Hutchings gathered 26 possessions and took 11 marks, Ray Bartholomew had 24 disposals and took 14 marks with Joel Rice also picking it up 20 times and Steven Browne 18.
Anthony Tsalikis kicked four goals, Jeff Gobbels three and Brent LeCras two.
Jarrhan Jacky led the way for Swan Districts racking up 26 possessions, taking nine marks and kicking a goal. Graham Jetta worked hard all day long to finish with 25 disposals and eight marks as well.
Captain Josh Roberts had 23 disposals and kicked a goal, Tom Roach gathered 22 possessions, Kyle Hams 21 from defence, Mathew Aitchison 18 and Justin Simpson 18 to go with a goal.
There were once again seven players in the team who have made their league debuts this season with Alex Howard solid in defence with 17 possessions and six marks. Matthew Jukes had 16 disposals, five entries inside-50 and kicked a goal as well.
Marcus Adams had 15 disposals and took six marks. Dayle Garlett gathered 15 possessions and kicked a goal as well.
Subiaco's performance to beat East Fremantle was emphatic and in fact could have been by a bigger margin had the Lions kicked straight. Blake Broadhurst kicked four goals and ruckman Michael Rix two.
Shaun Hildebrandt (pictured above) also booted two to go with his 31 possessions and 12 marks. Jason Bristow had 34 possessions, 11 tackles and seven entries inside-50. Danny Hughes worked hard for 24 disposals, 10 marks, five inside-50s and a goal.
Chris Phelan also had 24 touches and kicked a goal, Rhett Kerr 22 disposals, Rob Forrest 20, Des Headland 20 and Ben Randall 20.
Jamie McNamara tried hard for East Fremantle with 20 possessions with defender Andrew Stephen also gathering 20 disposals. Rory O'Brien had it 19 times, Bradd Dalziell 18, Lewis Fasolo 17 and Brad Sheppard 17. Tom Howlett and Brock O'Brien kicked two goals apiece.
Perth played well to end a losing run against East Perth at five with its 16-point win at home over the Royals on Saturday.
Ross Young continued his outstanding form with 28 possessions while Steve Armstrong picked up 25 touches, Michael Florio 24, Matthew Rogers 23, Matt Tedesco 22, Joel Leeson 21, Drew Robinson 21 and Dene White 21.
Haydn Busher (pictured) was outstanding with 21 disposals, 11 marks, seven inside-50 entries and three goals. Casey Sibosado also kicked three goals and Rob de Jongh did well in the ruck with 16 touches, six marks, 29 hit outs and a goal against his former side.
Freddie Clutterbuck gathered 28 possessions for East Perth as did Daniel Macaulay off half-back for the Royals. Craig Wulff collected 26 disposals and laid 11 tackles and Pat Travers worked hard for 25 possessions, six marks, four inside-50s and a goal.
Steven Payne gathered 24 touches and kicked a goal, Brendan Lee had 22 touches, Mat Seal 21 and defender Nathan Blee 20. Josh Smith and Adam Prior kicked three goals each, and Shaquille McKenzie and Michael Swan two.
PUSHING FOR A SPOT
Ben Saunders (pictured) made sure Claremont's league selectors didn’t forget him by kicking 11 goals as the Tigers thumped Peel's reserves by 224 points on Saturday. Lewis Broome also kicked six goals and Anton Hamp four.
Matt Orzel didn’t kick a goal but did rack up 34 possessions. Ian Rowe had 32, Henry Roberts 30, Tom Willett 25, Tom Ayton 24 and Coleman Cristinelli 24.
It was a tough day for Peel but Brad Triplett tried hard for 20 possessions and Brennan Gillam had 16. Matthew Larkins kicked the Thunder's only goal.
Swan Districts' reserves continued to gather some strong momentum to finish the season with by thumping West Perth by 61 points.
Matt Riggio was outstanding with 32 possessions, seven marks and a goal. Simon Parry gathered 26 disposals, Alex James 23 and Blain Boekhorst 21 to go with two goals.
John Williams tried hard for 21 possessions and Adam Faulkner 20. Ray Daniels, Rudy Riddoch and David Johnston booted three goals apiece and Roderick Manton four.
Sam Palm had 25 possessions for West Perth, Nick Carney 20 and Luke Hendricks 20. Trent Batterham was lively kicking five goals.
East Fremantle's reserves beat Subiaco by 86 points with Kym Monteath racking up 31 possessions and Ryley Dunn kicking three goals. Miles Bradley booted four goals also and Justin Monaco three. James Bayliss had 34 disposals and Tim Viney 28.
Rory Muller had 24 possessions for Subiaco, Ryan Wade 22 and George Hampson 21.
Perth's reserves beat East Perth by 43 points with Chris Yarran and Kane Ransted kicking three goals apiece. Daniel Venditti gathered 26 possessions, Jason Brennan 22, Aaron Elari 22 and Michael Mather 22.
Kane Moulton kicked three goals for East Perth with Jamie Del Borrello picking up 24 possessions, Boston Williamson 22, Rowan Brookes 19 and Riley Hutchinson 18 and a goal.
