West Perth did a tremendous job to rally against Swan Districts and record a vital win. The Falcons looked the better side for most of the day except for a period in the third quarter and early into the fourth. During this time a twenty four point lead was replaced with a thirteen point deficit but to their credit they fought back to record an eight point victory.

The Falcons won the toss and kicked to the Midland end with the aid of the breeze. Matt Gaudagnin was involved early as he got the ball forward to Adam Campbell who kicked the first after three minutes. The lead was extended by another major when Kepler Bradley bounced one through from outside fifty, two minutes later. Both sides scored behinds for the next ten minutes before the busy Tim Geappen kicked the first of his four for Swans. The lead was five points after fifteen minutes. The Falcons kicked the next two courtesy of Jason Salecic and Brayden Duckworth before Swans replied through Rhys Rowlands. A behind to Josh Pearce finished the quarter and West Perth led by two goals 4.3 (27) to 2.3 (15)

The second term was a very even affair but West Perth held sway. When Tim Geappen kicked his second after eight minutes the lead was seven points. Two minutes later first gamer, Caleb Shadbolt, dribbled through a clever goal to once again extend the lead. Two behinds to Swans and one to the Falcons followed before Jeff Gobbels kicked accurately from forty metres after receiving a free kick. The eighteen point lead was eaten into as Swans kicked consecutive goals to reduce the margin to just one straight kick. Brayden Duckworth then kicked a great goal from a sharp angle but once again Swans replies within a minute. Craig Smoker then combined with Jason Salecic who kicked his second. "Sala" was wearing the unfamiliar number 41 as he had received a cut head earlier in the quarter. It didn't stop him having a big influence on the game. Jason Salecic and Troy Longmuir then combined to get the ball to the hard running Callum Chambers who finished perfectly. This resulted in a three goal lead to West Perth at half time, 9.5 (59) to 6.5 (41). The hard run of Callum Chambers and Josh Pearce along with the great defensive work of Dion Fleay was a feature of a very strong team performance in the first half.

West Perth commenced the third quarter as it had finished the second. Callum Chambers ran into an open goal and kicked his second after two minutes and a series of behinds followed to take the lead to twenty four points after nine minutes. In an unexpected twist Swans then took control of the game to kick five unanswered goals and take a six point lead into the final quarter. This was due to their hard run and players who had been quiet coming into the game. West Perth worked hard but were over run. Scores were Swans 11.8 (74) to 10.8 (68).

After some rain during the third term the wind had dropped but West Perth had the job in front of them against a now confident Swans side. The job became even more difficult when a West Perth defensive error resulted in a goal and a thirteen point lead after seven minutes. The class of Callum Chambers then came to the fore. After a rushed behind to the Falcons Troy Longmuir and Jeff Gobbels combined to put the ball into Callum's hands who kicked a pressure goal from twenty five metres on a sharp angle. This was West Perth's first goal since the two minute mark of the third term. He then squared the game up when he ran onto the ball from the centre bounce and kicked a major from outside fifty metres. The ball bounced in the square over the back of the pack and through the major opening. The very hard working Josh Pearce kicked a behind to give West Perth the lead, a rushed behind followed and took it to two points. The Falcons got some breathing space when Matt Gaudagnin kicked accurately at the twenty one minute mark. Matt Tedesco and Clayton Lasscock were part of the build up. The game was brought back to a knife edge however with a Swans goal two minutes later. With the game once again in the balance Mark Seaby combined with Troy Longmuir out of the centre. The ball ended up in the hands of Jason Salecic who finished superbly to kick his third and seal the eight point victory. West Perth tied up the ball for the last five minutes of the quarter and when the siren went they had achieved a memorable 14.12 (96) to 13.10 (88) victory.

It was a victory that keeps the Falcons finals hopes well and truly alive and provides a spring board into the rest of the season. It was a terrific team performance but the effort of Josh Pearce who gathered forty three possessions was outstanding. The run of Callum Chambers was terrific. He wore a GPS device during the game and had covered fifteen kilometres up to three quarter time. His final quarter was his best. "Dizzy" Fleay was terrific in defence and he was ably supported by Jay Van Berlo and Luke Tedesco who did a tremendous defensive job on the dangerous Chris Yarran. Subiaco loom as a big challenge next week so come along and help get the boys over the line at The Arena.