WA Bounces Back with Stirring Win Over South AustraliaMonday, June 26, 2023 - 9:31 AM

WA has recorded its first victory at the AFL National U-18s Championship with a 28-point win over South Australia at Optus Stadium.

The Black Swans led by three points at half-time but took control of the match after the break in a performance to please coach Ben Dyer.

“The boys got back to work quickly after the first up loss to the Allies and trained really well over the last fortnight.

“What we achieved on Saturday was a reflection of that,” Dyer said.

WA’s ability to win the ball out of the middle gave the forwards better supply.

“We were a bit smarter about the way we went forward on Saturday, and we were able to get more from our inside 50s, which in turn led to five consecutive goals in the second half.

“The midfield got on top in clearances to give us some good territory and this was very different to game one.

“The third quarter was where we started to apply some scoreboard pressure and got reward for our time in forward half,” he said.

Peel Thunder midfielder Clay Hall was in superb form, collecting 33 disposals, nine clearances and seven inside 50s.

The son of former Eagles and Geelong forward Derek was ably supported by Koltyn Tholstrup, Aiden O’Driscoll, Daniel Curtin, and Reece Torrent.

“Clay was one of many good performers on the day.

“We had some defenders with some important jobs on their talented forwards and they were a big part of our overall performance,” said Dyer.

Having scored a morale boosting win, Dyer has already begun preparing for WA’s next challenge.

“We have a short week leading into game three against Victoria Country on Friday night, so we need to freshen the players up and look forward to another good test against a good opponent,” he said.

 WA 10.10 (70)

South Australia 6.6 (42)

WA's next game is at the WACA against Victoria Country at 6pm on Friday, June 30, entry to this game is free.