SEASON ENDING LOSS

WEST Perth's tilt at making the 2014 WAFL finals is officially over. The 17-point loss to the team that they hoped to take the place of has ended West Perth’s finals chance for this year. The Sharks hit the lead at the 22-minute mark of the first term and were not headed for the rest of the game. It was a disappointing loss following the dominant victory last week.

Brett Peake, who has been a real thorn in the side of the Falcons in recent times, hit the scoreboard first when he scored at the nine-minute mark. East Fremantle had been attacking relentlessly up to this point in time. The only Falcons goal for the quarter came three minutes later when Dan Hunt passed to Ray Bartholomew who finished from outside 50. This gave West Perth a one-point lead; two more behinds extended the lead to three before Jayden Schofield kicked accurately to give the Sharks back the lead, one that they didn’t relinquish for the rest of the game. A second to Peake ensured that East Fremantle went into the first change with a nine-point lead, 3.0 (18) to 1.3 (9).

The Sharks had the better of the second quarter and kicked the first two goals quickly. One of these was a third to Peake and he was proving to be the difference between the two sides. Steven Browne narrowed the margin after a precise kick from the boundary but the Sharks took control to kick the next three and lead by 30 at the 27-minute mark. They simply outran the Falcons. The lead was narrowed to four straight goals just before half time when Anthony Tsalikis fed the ball to Browne who ran into an open goal for his second. At the main break East Fremantle led 7.3 (45) to 3.3 (21).

West Perth was out of the blocks in the third quarter kicking two majors within five minutes. The first was a terrific left foot snap by Marc Crisp and the second a finish from the square by Max Alexander after he marked and received a 50-metre penalty. It was a real arm wrestle from here with behinds the order of the day until the 24-minute mark when Boston Williamson kicked one for East Fremantle. This gave them a 19-point lead but the highlight of the game was to follow shortly after. Marcus Adams, who had been playing down back, took possession of the footy 40 metres out on the boundary and dribbled it through. It would have to be close to goal of the year but most importantly it put the Falcons back in the game and they trailed by only 13 points at the final change. East Fremantle led 8.6 (54) to 6.5 (41).

The wonderful goal failed to lift West Perth in the final quarter as East Fremantle kept the Falcons scoreless until the 25-minute mark. In the meantime they had stretched their lead to 24 points by kicking one major and five behinds. The last two scores of the game went to West Perth and one of these was a second to Adams. The 17-point loss blew the siren on West Perth’s finals hopes. East Fremantle won 9.11 (65) to 7.6 (48).

West Perth's reserves continue to be a shining light and they scored a comprehensive victory to move into second spot. It was also pleasing to see the colts record another victory to move within sight of the four. Best players for the league included Dan Hunt, who continues his terrific form, Shane Nelson, Aaron Black and Luke Tedesco. 'Teddy' played a courageous game after receiving a knock to the eye early and Jordan Jones was very sore after the game. A trip down to Mandurah next week so it will be interesting to see how the side approaches its last few games of the season.

PHOTOS BY BELINDA TAYLOR