WAFL Team of Round 7Wednesday, September 2, 2020 - 7:19 AM - by Chris Pike

ALL of a sudden one weekend's action can change so much and with two rounds of the 2020 Optus WAFL Premiership Season remaining, Subiaco and East Perth have put themselves in the finals hunt with Claremont and Perth still not guaranteed of anything.

Round 7 of the WAFL got underway on Saturday afternoon with Perth attempting to lock in a first finals appearance since 1997 and all but ending Subiaco's quest for a third straight premiership in the process at Lathlain's Mineral Resources Park.

But it wasn’t to be and the Lions proved they can't be ruled out still in 2020 with two rounds remaining as they came away with the 13.12 (90) to 9.10 (64) victory.

South Fremantle then remained undefeated and kept Peel Thunder winless, but it wasn’t easy for the Bulldogs in the eventual 9.16 (70) to 5.5 (35) victory at Mandurah's David Grays Arena.

Claremont then survived a scare against East Fremantle to go a step closer to another finals appearance holding on for the 10.5 (65) to 9.6 (60) win at East Fremantle's New Choice Homes Park.

Then to close the round at Leederville Oval, East Perth maintained any hope of reaching finals as well with a strong performance to defeat Swan Districts 11.9 (75) to 6.4 (40).

Now after seven rounds and with two weeks of the home and away season remaining, South Fremantle (6-0) is clear on top of the ladder undefeated just ahead of West Perth (5-1).

Claremont (5-2) remains in third but has just one game to go and that happens to be against West Perth this Saturday.

Perth (4-2) is in fourth position while Subiaco (3-3) is just outside in fifth spot ahead of East Perth (3-3), East Fremantle (1-5), Swan Districts (1-5) and Peel Thunder (0-7).

PLAYER OF THE ROUND – JYE BOLTON
What a career he has had since arriving at Claremont in 2016 and there is no signs of Jye Bolton slowing down after another best on ground performance for the Tigers on Saturday.

Bolton has racked up the accolades since joining the Tigers from Werribee in the VFL back in 2016, and he remains one of the very and most prolific midfielders in the WAFL now in 2020.

That was fully on show on Saturday and his team needed that performance from him as well to hold off a determined East Fremantle. 

The Tigers needed to win the game to take a step further towards booking in a fourth straight finals appearance and Bolton helped to ensure they clung to the five-point victory.

The 28-year-old finished the afternoon with a best on ground performance for Claremont made up of 29 possessions, 10 marks, six inside-50 entries and two goals to make him the clear choice for Player of the Round.

Bolton is in the middle of another fine season for Claremont averaging 25.4 disposals a game and in the shortened quarters of 2020, that number becomes all the more impressive.

The accolades that Bolton already has racked up in his time at Claremont are remarkable with him having won Sandover Medals in 2016 and 2018, State Game Simpson Medals in 2016 and 1018, and Claremont fairest and best awards in 2016 and 2018 as well.

That suggests that his 2017 and 2019 seasons might not have been as good, but that's not the case at all and he was runner-up in Claremont's fairest and best in 2017 and was again named to the WAFL Team of the Year in 2019.

His consistency now over five years has been remarkable but the one thing missing for him is that elusive premiership at Claremont which he will still be hoping can happen in 2020 after the Tigers made finals in 2017, won a final in 2018 and reached the preliminary final in 2019.

Players of the Round
Round 1 – Chris Masten (Perth)
Round 2 – Logan McDonald (Perth)
Round 3 – Tyler Keitel (West Perth)
Round 4 – Noah Strom (South Fremantle)
Round 5 – Leigh Kitchin (Subiaco)
Round 6 – Nathan Blee (East Perth)
Round 7 – Jye Bolton (Claremont)

BACK POCKET – JOSH BOOTSMA (Peel Thunder)
Returned to the WAFL with Peel this season on the back of an SOS call from the Thunder once it was revealed no Fremantle AFL-listed players was available, and he continues to prove that he was too good not to be playing in the competition all along. The former Carlton defender did all he could down back and had 19 possessions and five marks with his booming kick out of the back-line a treat to watch.

FULL-BACK – HAYDN BUSHER (Claremont)
Continues to make a strong case to be the league's leading key defender having taken on the greater responsibility now in 2020 in the back-line for the Tigers. Put in another standout performance against East Fremantle and ended up with 14 possessions and eight marks.

BACK POCKET – DREW ROHDE (Subiaco)
The former West Perth defender has become a dual premiership player since joining Subiaco and now with 88 WAFL games to his credit, is considered an experienced player in an increasingly young team. He was tremendous for the Lions in the win against the Demons down back and had 19 possessions, five tackles and four marks.

HALF-BACK FLANK – MICHAEL SINCLAIR (Perth)
The Perth captain for 2020 did all he could to stand tall and hold down the fort in the back-line on Saturday despite the eventual loss for the Demons against Subiaco. The dual fairest and best winner and 119-game veteran played well with another 15 possessions and eight tackles.

CENTRE HALF-BACK – CHAD PEARSON (South Fremantle)
Continues to emerge as one of the best and most versatile defenders in the competition and it's hard to imagine AFL scouts aren't showing a keen interest in him now for 2021. Had another superb performance at centre half-back for South Fremantle in win over Peel and finished with 17 possessions, four marks and three inside-50 entries.

HALF-BACK FLANK – NICK SUBAN (South Fremantle)
Spent plenty of the game in the midfield and gave South Fremantle good grunt and drive against a Peel team that he won premierships with in 2016 and 2017 while still listed at the Fremantle Dockers. Continues to produce for the Bulldogs and was superb again with 21 possessions, six marks, six tackles and a goal.

WING – JACKSON MERRETT (Peel Thunder)
The reigning Peel fairest and best winner and former Essendon AFL player of 56 matches is on target for back-to-back club champion awards since joining the Thunder. Was outstanding once again on the win on Saturday against league-leading South Fremantle with 25 touches, eight marks, five tackles and a goal.

CENTRE – AIDAN LYNCH (East Perth)
The former hard-at-it West Perth midfielder has settled right into life in the East Perth on-ball brigade and is thriving at the Royals. Was best afield in the win against Swan Districts finishing with 31 possessions, nine tackles, six marks and five entries inside the forward 50.

WING – KANE MITCHELL (Claremont)
The Claremont captain, dual fairest and best winner and 2012 Sandover Medallist put together an outstanding all-round performance against East Fremantle in the crucial tight victory. He ended up delivering 20 possessions, 10 marks, six tackles, five inside 50s and a goal.

HALF-FORWARD FLANK – JAKE FLORENCA (South Fremantle)
At colts and reserves level with South Fremantle he showed a glimpse into the ball magnet he could become, and now has become a standout WAFL midfielder over the past 18 months as he has grabbed his increased opportunity. There's every chance he is a genuine Sandover Medal contender and he had another 36 possessions, eight marks, six inside 50s and four tackles against Peel.

CENTRE HALF-FORWARD – EDDIE SIMPSON (East Perth)
The former Claremont big man is now finding his feet as a key forward with East Perth and provided an impressive Royals midfield with a strong target to kick to in the win against Swan Districts. He ended up kicking four goals from seven kicks and six marks.

HALF-FORWARD FLANK – CODY LEGGETT (East Fremantle)
There was quite the furore over his desire to join East Fremantle from Perth in 2020, but he eventually got his wish and has played mostly down back and done well for the Sharks so far. But spent more time in the midfield on Saturday and got forward to good effect against Claremont to kick two goals to go with 24 touches, four inside 50s, three marks and two tackles.

FORWARD POCKET – CALLAN ENGLAND (Claremont)
The former Eagles rookie continued his outstanding 2020 season with Claremont that could well earn him a second chance in the AFL for 2021. Ended up with another 17 possessions, five marks and a goal in the win against East Fremantle.

FULL-FORWARD – MASON SHAW (South Fremantle)
Is closing in on the Bernie Naylor Medal with the South Fremantle spearhead kicking another four goals in Saturday's win against Peel from 13 possessions and eight marks. Has now kicked 16 goals for the season to be one behind Perth's Logan McDonald and overall has kicked 213 goals for the Bulldogs in 95 WAFL appearances.

FORWARD POCKET – JAKOB ATKINSON (Subiaco)
It's a decidedly new-look forward-line at Subiaco and he looks capable of now being part of it for a long time to come. Showed good signs in 2019 before being unlucky to lose his place in the Grand Final for the retiring Clancy Wheeler, but gave a glimpse into his goal kicking potential in the win against Perth by kicking three goals from 18 disposals and seven inside-50 entries.

RUCK – LACHLAN DELAHUNTY (Subiaco)
The reigning Sandover Medallist, triple premiership player and 110-game WAFL veteran proved to be the best ruckman on the ground against Perth on Saturday, including against cousin Kieran, and he was instrumental in the win. Finished with 19 disposals, 23 hit outs and a goal.

ROVER – SAM FISHER (Swan Districts)
Was a prized recruit for Swan Districts from the VFL in 2020 and continues to show why as he often fights against the tide against quality and deeper opposition midfields. Produced a brilliant game against East Perth consisting of 37 touches, seven marks, seven tackles and four inside-50 entries.

INTERCHANGE – NATHAN O'DRISCOLL (Perth)
After an exciting WAFL debut the previous week in the win against Claremont, he again stood up impressively in Saturday's loss to Subiaco for the Demons. Ended the afternoon with 20 possessions and six tackles, and from here should Perth end its finals drought in 2020 he looks like he'll be a part of the team the rest of the way.

INTERCHANGE – KYAL HORSLEY (Subiaco)
The inspirational 205-game former captain was back to some impressive form in his first game back after a month off for Subiaco on Saturday. It's no surprise that his return for the Lions coincided with a win to keep their finals hopes alive and he finished with 23 possessions, four marks and four tackles.

INTERCHANGE – JACKSON RAMSAY (East Perth)
Is in the middle of another standout season for East Perth on the back of a brilliant 2019 where won the club's fairest and best having missed 2018 with a knee reconstruction. Is one of the league's leading midfielders and put together another game against Swan Districts on Saturday made up of 30 disposals, nine inside-50 entries and four marks.

INTERCHANGE – RYAN LESTER-SMITH (East Fremantle)
Got ever so close to celebrating his 100th WAFL game with East Fremantle with a win against Claremont on Saturday. It wasn’t quite to be but he did all he could with 16 possessions and seven marks, and he deserves strong recognition for reaching a milestone that looked a long way off when he played just 18 games the past three years after rupturing an ACL midway through 2017. 
 

UNLUCKY BUNCH
There were plenty of players who delivered tremendous performances across Round 7 but couldn’t quite fit into the Team of the Round, including:

Perth's Fraser McInnes, Logan McDonald, Matthew Taylor and Brady Grey.

Subiaco's Max Walters, Leigh Kitchin, Liam Hickmott and Greg Clark.

Peel Thunder's Brayden Lawler, Ben Howlett and Ben Hancock.

South Fremantle's Jacob Dragovich, Kade Stewart, Dylan Main and Blayne Wilson.

East Fremantle's Jordan Snadden, Tom Bennett and Cameron Eardley.

Claremont's Anton Hamp, Declan Mountford and Bailey Rogers.

East Perth's Angus Scott, Nathan Blee, Matthew Young and Scott Jones.

Swan Districts' Frank Anderson and Tony Notte.