McDonald's WAFL Round 15 PreviewFriday, July 1, 2016 - 1:08 PM - by Chris Pike

SOUTH Fremantle and Subiaco both play teams outside the top five in Round 15 of the WAFL as they continue to battle over top spot with East Perth looking to stay alive in the finals race and West Perth and East Fremantle trying to return to the winner's list.

All four Round 15 WAFL matches take place on Saturday afternoon with West Perth hosting East Fremantle at HBF Arena as both teams attempt to bounce back from disappointing losses to consolidate themselves in the top five.

East Perth is the team outside the top five with a chance of still breaking in but the Royals take on the league-leading South Fremantle at Fremantle Community Bank Oval with the Bulldogs needing to win to remain on top.

Subiaco could return to the top with a loss for South Fremantle with the Lions facing the bottom placed Swan Districts at Medibank Stadium while Claremont plays Perth at the Claremont Showground.

WEST PERTH (8-5, 3rd) v EAST FREMANTLE (7-6, 4th) – HBF ARENA, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 
Broadcast – KIX Digital

West Perth and East Fremantle both suffered disappointing losses last week and while it didn’t affect their positions in the top five another loss this Saturday could.

West Perth remains in third position despite its seven-game winning run coming to an end last Saturday at the hands of South Fremantle at HBF Arena.

East Fremantle also stayed in fourth place despite an 11-point defeat at the hands of Perth at Lathlain Park.

The Falcons now hold an 8-5 record and the Sharks are 7-6 so a win will keep the victor at least in the hunt of a top two spot behind South Fremantle and Subiaco while the loser will remain locked in a battle over a finals spot particularly if East Perth manages to beat South Fremantle.

The two teams last met back in Round 4 and that was with West Perth yet to warm up this season. East Fremantle took full advantage with a dominant 50-point win at ATOM Stadium.

The day will also serve as one of celebration for West Perth with the club commemorating the 75-year anniversary of the 1941 premiership team by wearing specially designed jumpers representing those worn by that side.

West Perth lost for the first time in eight games last week against South Fremantle and now the Falcons will be without 333 games of experience this Saturday against East Fremantle with Luke Tedesco and Andrew Strijk both out of the side.

Tedesco returned last week for his 150th game to earn life membership at the Falcons but he hasn’t been able to keep his place in the side while Strijk will be a significant loss after kicking another four goals last week, and seven majors in the past two weeks.

Laine Rasmussen should be an automatic inclusion for West Perth after he was a late withdrawal against South Fremantle last week.

Seva Mozhaev made way in the side for the returning Chris Keunen last week as well, but Mozhaev could be back to help out in the ruck against the Sharks and to potentially give the Falcons another option in attack.

With Nick Rodda still missing in the back-line, Ben King could return to help out the Falcons.

West Perth could also look at a couple of debutant to try and spark things in the forward-line in particular with Kael Coleman and Tyson Moulton in the mix. Last week in the reserves, Moulton kicked three goals while Coleman worked hard for 17 possessions and five tackles. 

East Fremantle's losses the past two weeks has certainly been in a large part due to the loss of key players in the midfield.

Now George Hampson, Cameron Eardley and Liam Anthony have all been named in the squad to return against West Perth on Saturday, but all will still need to prove their fitness before taking the field in the crucial clash with the Falcons.

The reward for one of them will likely be having Dean Munns giving the job of running with them for the afternoon.

Jack Perham is another important player for East Fremantle who could return against West Perth after missing last week's loss to Perth while Jesse Adamini, Tyler Chalwell and Jacob Green are in the mix for a recall.

Last week in the reserves, Adamini delivered 28 possessions while Chalwell had 22 disposals and Green 11 touches and a goal.

While East Fremantle could welcome back some important players, they lose some more important contributors as well and perhaps none more so than someone who has played just two games. Lewis Krakouer has kicked five goals in his first two games but he won't be there on Saturday.

Matthew Bannister, Fraser Perry and Justin Simpson are also out of the East Fremantle team to take on West Perth at HBF Arena on Saturday.

SOUTH FREMANTLE (10-2, 1st) v EAST PERTH (5-7, 6th) – FREMANTLE COMMUNITY BANK OVAL, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 
Broadcast – 91.3 SportFM

South Fremantle and East Perth do battle at Fremantle Community Bank Oval on Saturday with the Bulldogs needing to win to stay on top of the ladder while the Royals must win to remain in the finals race.

South Fremantle returned to the top of the WAFL ladder last week with a 35-point win over West Perth at HBF Arena but the Bulldogs do need to keep winning to stay there ahead of Subiaco even though they have played a game less than the Lions.

The Bulldogs have scored two strong wins over fellow top five teams Peel Thunder and West Perth following a loss to East Fremantle in the WA Day Foundation Derby ahead of the state game.

Those wins have seen South Fremantle improve to a 10-2 record on the season to be percentage clear of Subiaco.

East Perth had the bye last weekend following a solid 33-point win over Perth that kept its finals hopes alive.

The Royals currently sit in sixth position at 5-7 but they could be just one game out of the five with a win over South Fremantle ahead of a clash with Swan Districts and then what could be a defining derby against West Perth in Round 17.

The two met earlier in the season under lights at Fremantle Community Bank Oval and on that occasion South Fremantle proved too strong winning by 40 points in Round 3.

That win made amends for a 106-point win by East Perth over South Fremantle in Round 18 last year in the last day game the two teams played against one another.

South Fremantle scored a strong win over West Perth last week despite being without Haiden Schloithe, Ashton Hams and Adam McIntosh who will again all be absent this Saturday against East Perth.

The Bulldogs also lose half-forward Blaine Johnson again to a hamstring complaint despite him returning to play well with two goals last week.

Brendan Verrier looks set to be the automatic inclusion for the Bulldogs having now returned to full form and fitness. He had 34 possessions and nine tackles in the reserves last week to show he's ready for a first league appearance since Round 6.

Defender Chris Luff might also be needed for South Fremantle to play his first game of the year to help match up on East Perth's tall stocks.

Dylan Main could also return after good form in the reserves with 25 possessions, 12 tackles and eight inside-50 entries last week. Tyson Pickett remains in contention for a debut as well following another 21 disposals last Saturday in the reserves against West Perth.

East Perth beat Perth prior to the bye last week and now the Royals have plenty of changes coming into Saturday's clash with South Fremantle as they need to win to stay in the finals race in 2016.

While East Perth lose Scott Lycett, Patrick McGinnity, Jackson Nelson and Mitch Brown who all played for West Coast in the win over Essendon at Domain Stadium on Thursday night, the Royals have plenty of Eagles talent at their disposal.

With West Coast only having Nic Naitanui on the injury list, East Perth could field as many as 18 Eagles players on Saturday.

Big men Jonathan Giles and Fraser McInnes will both return after the pair didn’t play for West Coast against Essendon with Dom Sheed also set to make his comeback through injury for the Royals.

Dropped Eagles pair Liam Duggan and Jack Redden will also play for East Perth and will look to impress in a bid to break back into the Eagles line-up.

East Perth could also receive a significant boost with co-captain Craig Wulff fighting hard to prove his fitness in a bid to play his first game since Round 9. The 277-game veteran would be a welcome return for the Royals while Nathan Blee could also be back after a week in the reserves.

With up to 18 Eagles players and likely no fewer than 15 guaranteed of playing, spots aren’t easy for East Perth players as well especially with Paul Johnson and Mitch Fraser certain to play along with Wulff if he proves his fitness.

CLAREMONT (3-9, 8th) v PERTH (4-8, 7th) – CLAREMONT SHOWGROUND, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 
Broadcast – Heritage FM 107.3

Claremont and Perth might not have finals to play for still in 2016 but there is plenty still at stake when they do battle on Saturday at the Claremont Showground.

Both the Tigers and Demons will want to build plenty of momentum to finish the season with to give something to work with heading towards 2016, and for Perth that has already happened while Claremont is still looking for that ignition.

The Demons have already won more games this season than each of the last two years and that included an impressive 11-point victory over East Fremantle at Lathlain Park last Saturday.

Two games prior to that, Perth also defeated Swan Districts by 54 points and that was after also defeating Swans back in Round 8. That means the Demons have won two of their last three games and three of their last six.

Perth has good reason to head to the Showground with confidence on Saturday based on that.

Claremont has lost its last two games since the state game to West Perth and Subiaco with the Tigers having lost seven of their last eight overall to fall out of finals contention with a 3-9 record.

Claremont's team on paper and the way it plays for periods during games certainly suggests the Tigers are a much better team than winning three of 12 matches, but they just haven't been able to put together four quarters and it has cost them dearly.

Perth already has a win over Claremont under its belt this season as well with the Demons overrunning the Tigers back in Round 3 to win by 17 points.

The two clubs have only ever met twice at the Showground in history and it's one win apiece but they were separated by 88 years. Perth beat Claremont by 101 points back in Round 7, 1926 before the Tigers won by 37 points in Round 20, 2014.

Claremont has lost seven of its last eight matches now but should get some help back on Saturday against Perth with state big man Darcy Cameron on track to make his return after missing just the one week following his heavy knock copped against West Perth a fortnight ago.

Tigers skipper Jake Murphy should also return after missing last week against Subiaco but Ryan Neates and Matthew Davies remain sidelined, with Brandon Franz joining them with the 132-game defender going down injured last week. Cameron Palmer is also out for the Tigers.

With Franz going out, another 73-game veteran Dylan Ross could come in for his first league game since Round 9 while midfielder Tom Shanahan is also in the mix to return after missing last week's clash with Subiaco.

Claremont could also unveil another debutant in the form of Chris Oakley who has been in some encouraging form in the reserves that included 18 possessions and a goal last week against Subiaco.

Perth delivered its most impressive performance of the season last week to beat East Fremantle and that was despite losing ruckman Angus Graham and captain Dene White early in the contest. Both are out this week against Claremont as a result.

Sam Garstone did a tremendous job carrying the ruck in the absence of Graham last week but coming up against Mitch Andrews and Darcy Cameron this week is a much tougher challenge with all due respect to East Fremantle's ruck brigade.

As a result, Garstone will need some help in the ruck and that will likely see Stephen Mills get the call up for his first game since Round 6.

Without Garstone in the forward-line, Perth will need some tall targets even if Cody Leggett had a day out against the Sharks with seven goals. Spencer White could come in for his first league match since Round 3 after returning in the reserves last week with two goals from 15 possessions and six marks.

Todd Stevenson is another player in the mix to come in and potentially help out as a forward and ruckman. He had 14 touches, seven marks, 19 hit outs and a goal last week against East Fremantle in the reserves.

Taran Etto could also return for the Demons after a week in the reserves that saw him have 18 possessions and eight tackles with Corey Byrne putting himself in contention with 21 disposals and two goals.

SUBIACO (10-3, 2nd) v SWAN DISTRICTS (2-10, 9th) – MEDIBANK STADIUM, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 

Subiaco and Swan Districts appears the great mismatch on paper coming into Round 15 but the black-and-whites will be looking to take it right up to the Lions.

Swans are coming off their best performance of the season last week defeating Peel Thunder by 39 points at Bendigo Bank Stadium.

It might have been a virtual reserves team that Peel was fielding due to the lack of AFL-listed players from Fremantle, but Swans still found some form and confidence to kick by far their biggest score of the season and put together their best performance.

Prior to last Saturday, Swan Districts had not scored more than 79 points in any game this season but they delivered 18.10 (118) with Ricky Cary starring with six goals.

However, Subiaco will be a far different challenge for Swan Districts this Saturday at Medibank Stadium.

The Lions have beaten East Fremantle by 78 points and Claremont by 26 last Saturday to improve to a 10-3 record on the season to only be percentage off top spot behind South Fremantle.

But Subiaco has played one more game than the Bulldogs so the Lions do need to keep winning to keep pace for the minor premiership in 2016 for a second straight year.

Subiaco and Swan Districts played back in Round 5 at Steel Blue Oval and on that occasion the Lions were comfortable 39-point winners.

Subiaco has been dominant the last two weeks since the state game with wins over East Fremantle and Claremont, but the Lions continue to be missing some important premiership players.

Versatile big man Lachlan Delahunty will again miss Saturday's clash with Swan Districts leaving the ruck duties to be shared between Sean Bradley, Clancy Wheeler and Hamish Shepheard.

Brett Robinson still hasn’t played since Round 9 despite being named to return for several weeks now. He did, however, return in the reserves last week and had 19 possessions so the signs were good that he could be back in the league side as early as Saturday.

Brad Stevenson, Dylan Elliott and Jeremy Woodley are all in contention to return to the Subiaco team as well after solid form in the reserves.

Stevenson provides another key position player and had 14 possessions last week while Elliott can be another defensive option with Woodley capable of adding another goal kicking option after booting three last week in the reserves.

Dylan Clarke is the only out of the Subiaco team at this stage despite having kicked eight goals in the previous four games.

Swan Districts returned to the winner's list last Saturday for the first time since Round 4 and now the black-and-whites attempt to keep that winning form going.

Coach Greg Harding has been giving plenty of opportunities to young players as the season has progressed and the black-and-whites could have another debutant this Saturday.

Ben Holman first played reserves football in 2012 while still in the colts team and after 31 games the previous three years, he has put together a consistent 2016 to now put himself on the verge of selection for his debut.

The 22-year-old from Ellenbrook had another 19 possessions in the reserves last week.

Tyson Hodge could also return for Swan Districts to provide another versatile tall option for Harding. He returned to the reserves and had 15 possessions and a goal last week.

Sean Fletcher kicked three goals last week in the reserves against Peel to put himself in the mix for a recall as well while Ben Whitsed did the same with another 20 possessions.

Nelson Ansey is the only out of the Swan Districts side from the one that beat Peel at this stage