2025 WAFL season review: West Perth

West Perth made a late charge towards finals under caretaker coach Paul Sanzone but ultimately fell short.

Long-time assistant coach Sanzone took the reins from club legend Jason Salecic midway through the season, with the Falcons finishing seventh on the ladder with a 6-12 record.

A shock loss to Subiaco in Round 18 ultimately sealed the Falcons’ finals fate, but there was a lot to work with for the future.

Sanzone wasn’t afraid to blood the young guns with State 18s trio Jacob Farrow, Sam Swadling and Lochlain Carpenter all getting a taste of senior footy in the background half of the season, likewise with Matt Galjaardt after a strong body of work in the reserves.

Big-bodied midfielder Kane Bevan, a Jack Clarke medallist back in 2022, took his game to another level in another major positive as he looks to get a long-awaited draft chance.

Veteran sharpshooter Tyler Keitel won his fifth Bernie Naylor Medal after a 52-goal season, edging out South Fremantle recruit Trey Ruscoe (50 goals) on the back of a six-goal final round against East Fremantle.

Fellow club greats Shane Nelson and Aaron Black remarkably played their 250th game as teammates in the penultimate round of the season against South Fremantle.

Nelson, who averaged a team-high 26.7 disposals per game to show he’s still got plenty left in the tank, reached his 250-game milestone earlier in the season in a significant achievement for the two-time premiership player and prolific ball winner.

There’s a lot to work with at West Perth with plenty of exciting talent coming through as Sanzone gets his chance at the top job full-time in 2026.

Classy half-back Farrow could end up being WA’s first player called out in this year’s AFL National Draft, while ball magnet Swadling shouldn’t be far behind.

There’s plenty of others who will become excellent long-term WAFL players who have emerged like big man Riley Sprigg, tackling machine Corey Rundle and livewire Jack DeMarte.

Keitel’s standing as a West Perth great was enhanced when he won his second Breckler Medal as the Falcons best in season 2025.