Match Report – Tigers bite back against SharksSaturday, May 22, 2021 - 6:52 PM - by Alex Ventouras

CLAREMONT bounced back from their first loss of the season in emphatic style dominating East Fremantle to win by 42 points on a wet Saturday afternoon at New Choice Homes Park.

Leading the way for the Tigers were familiar stars Jye Bolton (33 disposals) - fresh off his fourth Simpson Medal for WA in the State game against South Australia last Saturday - and Lachlan Martinis (32) while Jack Buller finished the game with three goals on a tough day for tall forwards. 

Luke English (29 disposals) and Jonathon Marsh (21) fought hard all day for the Sharks, who hold their spot in the top five despite the loss on their home turf. 

While the rain was only light to start the game, it still made for a slog meaning contested football was golden and that’s exactly where the tigers got on top thanks the likes of Ryan Lim and returning skipper Jared Hardisty playing his first game for the season.

Despite the Tigers only leading inside 50s by one, they were able to make the most of their opportunities with deeper entries and more polished foot skills, taking a 27-point lead at quarter time.

The second quarter was more of an arm wrestle with neither side able to play with much freedom due to the conditions and this was evident on the scoreboard with both teams kicking just two goals for the quarter.

Whilst the rain was only light in the first half, the storm officially arrived during the main break, however this didn’t prove to be an issue for the Tigers who got well and truly on top for this quarter stretching their lead to 47 points and the final break.

The class and composure with ball in hand of Martinis and Jack Lewsey in defence was a standout in the difficult conditions as the Sharks clearly struggled with their ball use when moving the ball forward. 

The final quarter was well and truly a scrap, as both teams struggled for clean position, however an incredible snap from a tight angle by Claremont veteran Kane Mitchell provided a rare highlight for the crowd. 

SCHOENFELD TAG WORKS FOR CLAREMONT
Coming off a 40-disposal game in his last WAFL outing, it’s no surprise Claremont assigned Declan Mountford the tagging job on midfielder Josh Schoenfeld on Saturday afternoon. Running with him for the entire match, Mountford was able to keep Schoenfeld to just the 13 touches for the game, as other clubs are sure to take notice of the move that worked so well for the Tigers. 

GORRINGE EARNS RESPECT ON DEBUT
On a difficult afternoon for the Sharks, one shining light was the debut of Finn Gorringe. Fans stood up and applauded the young defender as he showed enormous courage running back with flight of the football into oncoming traffic to take one of the best grabs you’ll see this season. Despite having his hands full with former West Coast rookie Callan England, he looked composed in defence and didn’t look out of place at league level. Gorringe finished with 12 disposals and seven marks for the game.

UMPIRES HOT ON DELIBERATE OUT OF BOUNDS
One of the talking points out of this afternoon’s game is how strict the umpires were in their interpretation of the deliberate out of bounds rule. Perhaps it was to get the game moving and avoid stoppage after stoppage but supporters on the sideline were extremely vocal of their discontent whenever a decision was called.