Remember all those WAFL final four shaping scenarios we suggested last week? Well they all happened.
Saturday started with Subiaco in fourth place and needing a win over West Perth to be secure and a competitive effort to make finals fairly certain. By three quarter time the Lions were down by 46 points and in danger of giving East Perth an unlikely look at the finals. Subi kicked five goals to one in the last quarter to go down by 19 points.
Meanwhile at Leederville East Perth were on top but not dominating a plucky Peel and led by 25 points at three quarter time when perhaps they got the message the season could be extended. In the last quarter the Royals scored 7.4 to nothing.
When the calculators stopped clicking at about 4.50pm East Perth had jumped over Subiaco and were in fourth place… by 0.7%.
Subi’s late revival hadn’t done them any good but it had harmed West Perth who missed second spot by 0.2% to Claremont.
But there was more to come. In the late game Perth needed to beat unbeaten South Fremantle to make the finals for the first time in 22 years.
The Demons were down by nine points at three quarter time but scored 1.8 to nothing in the last quarter to pull off the victory. (It really would have been more fitting and Demon-like for Perth to score 10 behinds to wipe off the deficit.)
In the Sunday game Swan Districts finished the season with a flurry with a 31-point win over East Fremantle. It was the last WAFL game for East Fremantle captain Jonathon Griffin and Swan Steven Payne (East Perth’s fairest and best winner in 2014).
Round nine
West Perth 12.5 (77) Subiaco 8.10 (58)
East Perth 15.11 (101) Peel 4.6 (30)
Perth 8.18 (66) South Fremantle 9.7 (61)
Swan Districts 11.9 (75) East Fremantle 6.8 (44)
Sunday
First semi final: West Perth vs Perth (Arena Joondalup)
Second semi final: South Fremantle vs Claremont (Fremantle Oval)