Simpson, fellow recruits standing tall for SharksSaturday, April 30, 2016 - 1:08 AM - by Chris Pike

EAST Fremantle might have lost last Saturday's Anzac Derby but there were signs aplenty to excite Sharks fans for the rest of 2016 and none more so than the performances of Jesse Crichton, Matthew Watson and Josh Simpson.

Following a horror end to the 2015 season where the Sharks lost 12 of their last 13 matches coming off a preliminary final appearance in 2014, incoming coach Rob Wiley knew that he had to add some recruits to the team he was inheriting.

But he kept largely to those either he or East Fremantle was familiar with.

Wiley was able to lure Watson to join him at the Sharks after the pair had an assistant coach and player relationship together in the AFL at Carlton.

He was then able to talk Brett Peake out of the retirement he announced following the 2014 preliminary final loss to Subiaco.

Crichton and Simpson are two more players who have previously played with East Fremantle along with the Fremantle Dockers in the past, and they have returned to the Sharks in 2016.

And while last Saturday's Anzac Derby at ATOM Stadium might have ended up being a loss for the Sharks to the tune of seven points to the Bulldogs, it wasn’t without all those arrivals or returnees having a significant impact.

In the forward-line, Watson played the best of his five games for East Fremantle this year showing he's capable of being the key forward the Sharks have been craving by booting five goals from 14 possessions and eight strong marks.

And alongside him, Peake continued to take all his chances by kicking another three goals to take his tally to 15 on the season to be equal leader in the Bernie Naylor Medal race with South Fremantle's Ben Saunders.

In the midfield, Crichton also had his best game of the season on return from the SANFL with 27 possessions and five tackles while Simpson played what was likely the best game of his career with 25 disposals, six marks and two goals.

The end result might have been a loss for the Sharks, but with two minutes to go they were in front and the same was the case earlier in the season against Peel Thunder.

Those losses late have hurt but the reality is they have been three minutes away from entering this Sunday's clash with East Perth at Medibank Stadium with a 4-1 record instead of 2-3.

Simpson was always looked at as a player with immense talent during his time at Fremantle but he did struggle to adjust to life in the AFL system.

Now having spent some time during 2015 working out what he wanted out of life and football, he returned to East Fremantle and after a solid first four games of the season, he delivered a scintillating performance in Saturday's derby.

"I hit a three or four-game spot where I was getting my average playing time and possessions up, and then on the weekend I was lucky enough to get an opportunity into the midfield," Simpson told Shark TV during the week.

"So thanks to Robby for that opportunity and luckily I pulled out a good game. Hopefully it's not the last. If Robbie is happy with how I'm going then hopefully I can keep on providing a few more good games down the track."

Not only did Simpson deliver a strong four-quarter performance, but it was his huge mark just before half-time that will long be remembered, and that includes by himself.

"I saw Watto was going to have a shot but then I saw him get ready to just put it up at the top of the square," he said.

"I was sitting at the back of the pack and kind of went forward, then I stepped back and got the defender out of my way. Then I took a couple of steps and up I went. Thank god I marked it because I usually I spill them, but this one I get to remember or a while now."

The attention of the Sharks and Simpson now turns to Sunday's clash with East Perth.

East Fremantle goes into the clash on a two-game losing run while East Perth has won its last three matches of the season.

The Royals have also won five of the last six games over the Sharks, but Simpson of confident East Fremantle can turn the tide on Sunday if they tidy up a couple of important areas that have been costly so far.

"We've been saying our skills need to improve for three or four weeks now and I think that's the big factor in getting us a win," Simpson said.

"On the weekend again we were front in the last couple of minutes but it was our skills and more structure stuff that actually gave South back the game. I think that's the big key for us to get the win for East Perth is to fix up those couple of things."