Match Report – Eagles just deny Royals fightbackSunday, July 25, 2021 - 12:41 AM - by Breanna Redhead

THE West Coast Eagles were just able to deny what would have been a remarkable comeback victory from East Perth Leederville Oval on Saturday despite a scoreless last quarter.

The Eagles looked to have their third win of the season all sewn up with a 38-point lead at three quarter-time in a stark contrast to their Round 7 showing against the Royals where they only kicked three goals the entire afternoon.

This was a completely different West Coast outfit as they held the commanding three quarter-time lead, but East Perth knew its season was on the line and found something remarkable in the last term.

The result was East Perth holding West Coast scoreless in the final term while kicking five goals themselves to get within two points with Aidan Lynch kicking truly at the 23-minute mark.

However, the Royals ran out of time with the Eagles holding on for the dramatic 14.8 (92) to 13.12 (90) victory at Leederville Oval.

It was a disappointing day for the home side who played in front of club legends Mal Brown and Peter Miller who were present for the club’s Hall of Fame inductions earlier that day.

The team was hoping to propel forward off last week’s win against Perth which meant East Perth had won three of its past four matches to still be an outside chance of sneaking into the finals should they continue winning.

Pressure was on from the initial bounce down, with the Royals nabbing a quick three goals out of the blocks, but the Eagles responded to go ahead shortly after.

The Eagles continued to lead, settling their ball movement with clean, concise play that produced five goals by quarter-time to see them with a handy 16-point advantage.

The Royals' lack of structure saw them struggle offensively, allowing the Eagles to slip further in front for the second term. Down in more than the scoring, the Royals were behind 39-27 on the tackle count and 27-20 for inside 50s come the main break.

Despite the half-time deficit, Royals ruckman Scott Jones continued to stand tall now carrying the ruck load with Ajang Ajang dropped winning hit outs 18-16 over West Coast’s Nathan Vardy and Bailey Williams. 

Forward Matthew Young did well kicking a couple of goals, but despite his efforts for the quarter the Royals were still left down 27 points at half-time.

A third quarter surge saw the Eagles pile on six goals that could have ended the game early. It included a second from Jordan Busher and a third from Vardy. 

The ruckman gave a notable performance proving his versatility around the field with 12 disposals, five tackles and 31 hit outs.

With their season on the line, the Royals were fired up for the final quarter, kicking two goals in the first 10 minutes of the term, closing the gap to a four-goal difference and leaving West Coast looking run off their feet.

The trend continued as the Royals dominated inside 50s producing a huge five goals in the end for quarter from 11 attempts on goal while the Eagles didn’t score at all. A late goal from Aidan Lynch brought East Perth within two points of the Eagles.

Playing the clock, the Eagles gained possession and did enough to hold onto the ball and secure that two-point win.

LAST MINUTE REVIVAL
East Perth went down fighting, clawing back from a 38-point deficit at three quarter-time. The blue and black kicked the only five goals of the final quarter while the Eagles didn’t score at all. The comeback saw a variety of goal kickers with Matthew Young finishing the game with three, and Nick Merritt and Eddie Simpson two each while wingman Angus Scott led the game with 33 disposals.

OPTUS WAFL PREMIERSHIP SEASON – ROUND 16

EAST PERTH            3.0    6.2    8.6    13.12 (90)
WEST COAST EAGLES        5.4    8.7    14.8    14.8 (92)

EAST PERTH: Goals – Young 3; Simpson, Merritt 2; Ramsay, Wright, Lynch, Edwards-Baldwin, Magro, Jones.
Best – Scott, Ramsay, Young, Lynch, Kerr, Blee, Schumacher, Willcocks.
WEST COAST EAGLES: Goals – Vardy 3; Busher 2; Winder, Nelson, Williams, Ainsworth, Johnson, Brayshaw, Garlett, Hug, Nitschke.
Best – Nelson, Brayshaw, Witherden, Foley, Johnson, Vardy.