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WAFC Diversity Coordinator nominated for major Award
West Australian Football Commission Diversity Coordinator Louanne Wakefield has been named as a finalist in the Football Woman of the Year Awards that will be held in Melbourne this week.
Louanne has been recognised for achieving outstanding outcomes in the Diversity space for over a decade and going above and beyond in all aspects of her work, which includes mentoring young multicultural and indigenous women, and providing them with a pathway in the industry.
WAFC Executive Manager - Youth, Community & Game Development Troy Kirkham said Louanne not only went out of her way to support the girls in her programs, but built strong relationships across a number of multicultural and indigenous communities based on mutual trust and respect.
WAFC congratulates 2019 Premiers
The West Australian Football Commission congratulates Subiaco Football Club, West Perth Football Club and Claremont Football Club on winning the 2019 WAFL League, Reserves, and Simply Energy Colts Grand Finals.
Five different clubs were represented across the three Grand Finals, with 18,941 fans attending Optus Stadium to enjoy the day, culminating in family kick-to-kick on the hallowed turf.
Margins of just six points and five points separated the teams in thrilling Reserves and Colts grand finals. The League Grand Final saw Subiaco defeat South Fremantle by 96 points in a dominant display.
WAFC CEO Gavin Taylor congratulated all of the 2019 Premiers on their Grand Final performances.
Lions roar to back-to-back WAFL premierships
SUBIACO has further stamped itself as the WAFL powerhouse with a remarkably dominant 96-point Grand Final triumph over a South Fremantle team that had appeared ready to put up a significant challenge in the lead up.
South Fremantle had finished in second spot in each of the past four WAFL seasons and finally won through to a Grand Final and all signs were the Bulldogs would be able to give Subiaco a real fight on Sunday at Optus Stadium.
But aside from the opening 10 minutes of the game, that wasn’t the case and Subiaco showed its remarkable quality to go on a run of kicking 11 unanswered goals between South Fremantle's first and second of the afternoon.
Cooley claims Mel Whinnen Medal
Claremont’s Jack Cooley secured the Mel Whinnen Medal with a stunning performance in the 2019 Simply Energy WAFL Colts Grand Final.
Playing as the centreman for the Tigers, Cooley was enormous with 33 possessions (18 contested), 14 clearances, seven tackles, seven inside 50s and five marks, helping the Tigers defeat Peel by five points to win their fourth WAFL Colts Premiership this decade.
“Honestly I don’t think it will settle in for a few days [winning the premiership], but the vibe around the Club has been good all year. It’s just unreal at the moment,” he said.
Tigers pip Thunder in scintillating Colts Grand Final
GRAND Final day upsets continued in the Colts at Optus Stadium with Claremont knocking off a Peel Thunder team who had a dominant season thanks to the last goal and a remarkable smother to secure the win.
Claremont's reserves couldn’t cap off a dominant season by winning the Grand Final to start the day at Optus Stadium suffering a loss to West Perth, and it was a similar story in the colts decider with the Tigers upsetting the Thunder in an outstanding contest from start to finish.
Peel had a dominant colts season winning 14 of 16 matches during the home and away season, and then defeating Claremont in the second semi-final to advance straight to the Grand Final.
Falcons stun Tigers to claim Reserves Premiership
CLAREMONT might have been the dominant Reserves team all of 2019 but as the old saying goes, Grand Finals are won by the best team on the day and West Perth produced a stunning effort to take out the premiership at Optus Stadium.
The Reserves Grand Final opened the day at Optus Stadium on Sunday and it was a tremendous contest from start to finish with both teams featuring plenty of regular league players on top of future stars.
That produced a high quality contest and a tight battle with West Perth's 21-point lead at the eight-minute mark of the last quarter the biggest between the two teams all morning.
WAFL Reserves Grand Final Livestream
Emerging Pearson excited to be on Grand Final stage
CHAD Pearson has never looked back having cemented a spot in South Fremantle's back-line at the start of 2018 and while his future is remarkably bright, all he is focused on is experiencing a dream come true by playing in Sunday's WAFL Grand Final.
Pearson always looked as though one day he would become a regular league player with South Fremantle when he was playing impressive colts football in 2015 and 2016, and then with the way he adapted well to reserves football in 2017.
He even managed six league appearances in 2017 and did well with those opportunities but the reality was it was a strong and experienced South Fremantle group at the time so he lost his spot for the finals and went on to play in the last ever reserves Grand Final at Subiaco Oval.
Walters desperate for more after banging down Lions door
HAVING had to bang down the door for a league opportunity at all and then a spot in the midfield, Max Walters takes nothing for granted in his career but now that he's won one WAFL premiership, he's desperate to experience more with Subiaco.
Walters came through a talented midfielder at Subiaco playing 25 colts matches over 2013 and 2014 where he averaged 19.4 possessions and kicked 15 goals before he proved at the start of 2015 he was ready to step up to senior football with 27 disposals and two goals in his lone colts appearance.
Despite a tremendous season in the reserves where he averaged 20.1 disposals and kicked 13 goals, Walters couldn’t break into the premiership team in 2015 with Subiaco and it wasn’t until Round 9, 2016 that he made his debut.
Optus WAFL Grand Final Preview
YOU could say it is the WAFL Grand Final four years in the making and now after being the top two teams for four seasons straight, Subiaco and South Fremantle get to meet to decide the 2019 premiership this Sunday at Optus Stadium.
In each of the past four WAFL seasons Subiaco has finished on top of the ladder at the end of the home and away season with South Fremantle in second place, but now in 2019 it's the first time they have both capitalised on those positions to end up in a Grand Final.
Subiaco has gone further than that and taken out the minor premiership for five straight seasons now and the Lions are embarking on a sixth successive Grand Final appearance and looking to add to the premierships of 2014, 2015 and 2018 that they have won along that dominant stretch.
WAFL Reserves Grand Final Preview
CLAREMONT and West Perth finished first and second at the end of the season in the reserves so it's only fitting it's the Tigers and Falcons fighting out for the premiership on Sunday morning at Optus Stadium.
A monster day of celebration of West Australian football is planned for Sunday at Optus Stadium to conclude the 2019 WAFL season and it all gets underway with the Reserves Grand Final between Claremont and West Perth.
The game will begin at 8.40am and for those not yet in attendance at Optus Stadium that early or who might not be able to make it at all during the day, it will be available to be watched on livestream from wafl.com.au and the WAFL Facebook page.
Curley wants Bulldogs players to experience what he did
PRELIMINARY Final days might have caused him plenty of pain over the past 30 years, but Grand Finals have much better memories for South Fremantle coach Todd Curley and he's hoping his Bulldogs players create their own lifelong fulfilment this Sunday.
Not only had South Fremantle lost the last three WAFL preliminary finals to Peel Thunder in 2016, Subiaco in 2017 and West Perth in 2018, but that continued a history of heartbreak on that second last weekend for Curley that stretches way back.
While at West Perth as a player his preliminary final experiences were fruitful beating Subiaco in 1993, the Lions again in 2002 and then East Perth in 2003, the memories of the devastating losses in the AFL with the Western Bulldogs in 1997 and 1998 were shattering for all involved.
New-look Subiaco machine keeps rolling under Wardman
HIS coaching career couldn’t have got off to a better start but for Subiaco coach Beau Wardman, he knows that the Lions being favourites or what they've done leading into Sunday's Grand Final guarantees them nothing.
The Wardman story to now coaching a team in a WAFL Grand Final is a remarkable one. Having decided to embark on a coaching career after a previous life as a field umpire in the game, Wardman took on a challenging role with the Subiaco colts for the 2017 season.
But by the end of 2018, the Lions were celebrating a colts premiership on top of making history with the league and reserves flags of last year before Jarrad Schofield returned to the AFL system to take on an assistant coaching role at Port Adelaide.
Optus WAFL Grand Final Day - Around the Grounds
The Optus WAFL Grand Final will be played between Subiaco and South Fremantle at 2.40pm this Sunday, September 22 at Optus Stadium.
Key Event Info
Adults $25
Concession $20
Junior $5
8.40am – Reserves Grand Final - Claremont v West Perth
11.40am – Simply Energy Colts Grand Final – Peel Thunder v Claremont
2.40pm – Optus WAFL Grand Final - Subiaco v South Fremantle
Simply Energy WAFL Colts Grand Final broadcast live on Channel 7
Optus WAFL Grand Final broadcast live on Channel 7, ABC Radio, 6PR & SportFM
The Optus Family Zone
The Optus Family Zone at the WAFL Grand Final this Sunday will be the place to be pre-match with heaps of great entertainment and freebies for the kids. This fun-filled zone will be open from 12.00pm - 3.00pm outside The Camfield.
To celebrate the newly-released Abominable movie and Optus WAFL Grand Final between Subiaco and South Fremantle, the Optus Family Zone will be action packed including kids face-painting, colouring-in stations and heaps of games for the kids to play pre-match. Come early for giveaways, the chance to win movie tickets and much more thanks to Optus Perks.
You can even meet the lovable star of the movie Abominable, Everest, at the Optus Family Zone. Join us at the following times for a special photo with the cheeky Yeti all the way from the Himalayas:
12.00pm – 12.30pm
1.00pm – 1.30pm
2.00pm – 2.30pm
Optus Perks is also offering you the chance to win a family adventure to Shanghai thanks to Abominable. Head to Optus Perks or download the Optus Stadium app to find out more.
And if that wasn't enough, goal-kicking star, and Dockers and Adelaide Crows footy legend, Tony Modra will be making a star appearance between 12.00pm - 12.30pm.
Also don’t forget to download the official Optus Stadium app to be game-day ready. The app is your go-to for finding your way around the stadium, food & drink options and more great prizes thanks to our naming rights partner, Optus.
Game Day Activities
Make sure you arrive at Optus Stadium nice and early on Sunday with the kids to check out all the following activities:
Simply Energy will be handing out 1,000 free footballs so get in quick! You can also vote for your favourite WAFL club to earn them $10,000.
Bupa will be on hand for free health insurance check ups so visit their marquee and make sure you are getting the best deal on your policy.
O2Fit Compression Wear will be set up alongside the Kidz n Sport crew to entertain kids with all kinds of sporting activities.
Kia will have a brand new Kia Stinger on display and a photo booth. Plus you can sign up and register to race on field at Optus Stadium in their Beat the Sting competition. You just need to Beat The Sting and you walk away with a brand new Kia Stinger!
Grand Cinemas will be handing out heaps of movie passes and the crew from Nova 93.7 will be pumping out the tunes with heaps of giveaways.
Grab a Pie and Coca-Cola. Head inside the stadium and treat yourself to a Mrs Macs Famous Beef Pie and 600ml Coca-Cola for only $7.90
Simply Energy WAFL Colts Grand Final Preview
AFTER an incredible season in the WAFL Simply Energy Colts, Peel Thunder plays Claremont at Optus Stadium on Sunday with the 2019 premiership at stake
The game will bounce down on Sunday with the scheduled start time of 11:40am.
The Thunder are out for redemption after being beaten by 22 points at the hands of Swan Districts in the 2018 preliminary final, while the Tigers are aiming to claim their fourth Colts premiership from seven Grand Finals this decade.
