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Old head, young blood prove winning mix

Monday, April 8, 2024 - 5:40 PM
The old and the new are making a big difference at West Perth.
The old is evergreen centreman Shane Nelson.
He produced 35 disposals in the solid 48-point win over Perth on Saturday, the 57th time he has done that in his career.
Given that the 30-year-old has now played 228 matches for the Falcons – the same number as 1930s premiership stars Ted Tyson and Bill Rainoldi – the great accumulator has hit that mark in exactly one-quarter of his games.
It is a phenomenally consistent return for a player who has won five Breckler medals as West Perth’s fairest and best, two of them in premiership seasons, and could add a sixth by the end of the year.
The young is Jasper Scaife.
Two games into a career that could deliver plenty, the 197cm teenager set the stage for his team with three sharp goals in the first term at Pentanet Stadium.
He added another one late to be the leading scorer in the 17.14 (116) to 9.14 (68) result that ensured the Falcons were one of only two unblemished teams after the first two weeks of the season.
West Perth were wary of a Perth team that beat nemesis Subiaco in the season-opener, particularly given their own remarkable recent record.
The Falcons have lost to the Demons just once in their past 26 meetings going back to 2012 and have not been beaten at Lathlain since 2004.
But any concerns about a surprise loss vanished soon after Perth recruit Aaron Clarke struck in the opening minutes to give his team their only lead of the game.
Scaife hit back twice in a row, veterans Tyler Keitel and Aaron Black snared goals from loose play, then the teenager finished the term strongly as West Perth kicked seven unanswered goals.
The result was almost beyond dispute by the first break but Nelson and his colleagues made sure of it by the long break with their prolific ball-winning.
Connor West was busy as he gathered 30 possessions, Rohan Scurria got 25 and the miserly defence led by Zac Guadagnin gave Perth no room to move.
West Perth’s second quarter was notable for its remarkable efficiency with the home team landing six goals from just nine forward 50 entries.
Perth kicked the first three majors but Keitel and Black again had answers and when Luke Meadows landed a 50m bomb, and Sasha Kernutt was rewarded for a fierce chase for a loose ball with a neat snap from the boundary, West Perth had just about closed the door on their rivals.
Scores were squared in the second half but the poise of Nelson and his fellow veterans, and the spark provided by a group of emerging youngsters, was sufficient to get the Falcons home.
Subiaco will provide a stern challenge on Saturday but there is also anticipation rising for the WA Day derby given that the archrivals sit first and second on the league ladder.
 
WEST PERTH 7.3 13.5 13.9 17.14 116
PERTH 1.1 5.5 8.11 9.14 68
GOALS - WEST PERTH: Scaife, Kernutt 4; Keitel 3; Black, Bevan 2; Meadows, Johnson.
PERTH: A Clarke 3; Simpson 2; Byrne, Thompson, Bodie, Davis.
BEST - WEST PERTH: Sh Nelson, Scaife, Guadagnin, West, Kernutt, Black.
PERTH: Constable, Coniglio, Cooley, Simpson, Clarke, Davis.
 

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