McDonald's WAFL Round 20 PreviewFriday, August 7, 2015 - 12:31 PM - by Chris Pike

ROUND 20 of the 2015 WAFL season is another crucial one as time begins to run out for teams to secure their place inside the top five and it will see West Perth and Peel Thunder battle over second position, and East Perth and Claremont over fourth.

While not playing each other, West Perth and Peel Thunder are continuing to fight over second position on the WAFL ladder and a crucial home final in the first week of the finals while East Perth and Claremont do play one another with fourth spot on the line.

All four Round 20 matches take place on Saturday afternoon with East Perth playing Claremont at Medibank Stadium with the winner to go a long way to securing a finals position, while the loser could fall outside of the top five.

Swan Districts then needs to beat Subiaco to return to the top five when they meet at Steel Blue Oval while South Fremantle also must defeat Peel Thunder at Fremantle Oval to remain any hope of playing in the finals for the first time since 2011.

West Perth then has to beat the struggling East Fremantle at ATOM Stadium to remain in second position.

EAST PERTH (9-8, 4th) v CLAREMONT (8-8, 5th) – MEDIBANK STADIUM, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 
Broadcast – 91.3 SportFM 

East Perth and Claremont go to battle over fourth position on the WAFL ladder at Medibank Stadium on Saturday with the winner to go a long way to securing a finals berth.

The Royals currently hold fourth position with a 9-8 record and percentage of 113.87 while the Tigers aren’t far behind at 8-8 and percentage of 107.14.

With Claremont having a game in hand on the Royals as well, a win for the Tigers would put them in the box seat to make a return to the finals after narrowly missing out last year despite a terrific finish to the campaign, and now despite losing their first five games of 2015.

However, a loss for Claremont and the Tigers could end the round as low as seventh if Swan Districts and South Fremantle both win their matches, and they will be left with a big task of finding their way back into the top five in time for the finals.

East Perth, meanwhile, could end the round in second position with a win and if both West Perth and Peel Thunder lose. Even if the Falcons and Thunder win and the Royals remain fourth, it will put them at least one game and more than likely two clear of the teams below them.

However, a loss would leave the Royals vulnerable in the top five and with just two games remaining against Peel and Subiaco with a bye in Round 22 thrown in.

The Royals, though, are likely in their best patch of form of the season having won their last three games against Perth, South Fremantle and West Perth.

East Perth and Claremont have met just the once so far this season and now Saturday's clash will be their second, and last, and back on that occasion the Royals hit their low point of the season losing a third straight game and recording their lowest ever score against the Tigers.

Claremont won the game 8.12 (60) to 2.9 (21) in difficult conditions at the Claremont Showground but now the Royals are in considerably better form. However, the Tigers are playing well also and with a finals spot potentially at stake, it should be a terrific contest on Saturday.

Patrick McGinnity and Sam Butler both had outstanding performances for East Perth in last Sunday's win over West Perth, but unfortunately for the Royals that has seen them earn a call up into the West Coast team to play Hawthorn at Domain Stadium on Saturday night.

Scott Lycett has been named an emergency for the Eagles after an improved effort with the Royals on Sunday as well in the absence of Fraser McInnes, but remains a likely starter for East Perth against Claremont.

East Perth will likely benefit from having Josh Hill in its forward-line and Mark Hutchings in the midfield after both were dropped by the Eagles ahead of the clash with the Hawks.

Tom Barrass will make way at West Coast for the returning Jeremy McGovern as well so he will be an important inclusion at East Perth in the defence to try to help battle the likes of Beau Maister, Kepler Bradley and Darcy Cameron.

Jamie Bennell will also be back for East Perth after missing the clash against West Perth while good form in the reserves have Tom Shanahan, Beau Chatley, Clayton Giblett and Mitch Howlett in the mix for a call up by the Royals as well.

Claremont captain Jake Murphy was building some good form after a horror season with injury and he had 26 possessions, seven marks and a goal last Saturday in the win over Swan Districts, but he has been forced out of the team again for Saturday to play East Perth.

Shane McAdam is also out of the Tigers' line-up with Haydn Busher a certain starter as a big-bodied midfielder who can play a key position role if required after he was a late withdrawal last week against Swan Districts.

Isaac Baum worked hard in the reserves last week laying 10 tackles to put him back in the mix for a call up with Claremont while John Williams has continued to play solidly in the back-line with another 21 disposals to be back in the hunt for a call up.

Steven Edwards played seven matches in Claremont's league team last year but hasn’t been able break through for an appearance yet in 2015 but is again in the mix after some solid reserves form while Bailey Rogers is also a chance after 21 possessions last Saturday. 

SWAN DISTRICTS (8-9, 6th) v SUBIACO (14-2, 1st) – STEEL BLUE OVAL, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 
Broadcast – KIX Digital

If Swan Districts want to be a chance of returning to the WAFL top five at the end of this round then all the black-and-whites need to do is beat a Subiaco team that is four games clear on top of the ladder in defence of its premiership from 2014.

Swan Districts has played plenty of good football over its last eight quarters against top five teams Peel and Claremont, but the fact that both have ended up in narrow losses to the Thunder and Tigers mean that the black-and-whites sit outside the top five.

Swans currently hold an 8-9 record to be percentage behind the fifth place Claremont and a game and percentage behind the fourth place East Perth, so a loss against Subiaco would certainly make life difficult for the black-and-whites to still end up playing finals in 2015.

With Swans having the bye in the final round, the best they can hope for is to win their next three matches against Subiaco, West Perth and Claremont to give themselves the best chance of being part of the September action.

However, that's far from an easy task coming up against Subiaco on Saturday with the Lions' 44-point win over South Fremantle at Medibank Stadium seeing them move four games clear on top of the ladder and guaranteed of claiming the minor premiership on the back of the flag in 2014. 

Subiaco and Swan Districts will meet for the second, and last, time this season at Steel Blue Oval on Saturday with the first meeting at Medibank Stadium back in Round 9 seeing the Lions beat Swans 11.18 (84) to 6.6 (42).

Good form in the reserves has Jacob Coniglio, Laurence Grescos, Albert Dean, Josh Kirkup and Dylan Nelson all in the mix to return to the Swan Districts team to take on Subiaco at Steel Blue Oval on Saturday.

Last week in the reserves against Claremont, Kirkup had 19 possessions, Dean 33 disposals and six tackles, Coniglio 33 touches, nine marks, five inside 50s and a goal, Grescos 13 possessions and Nelson another three goals to all be in good form if they receive a call up to take on the Lions.

Kirk Ugle and Jesse Turner both go out of the black-and-whites line-up from the side that narrowly lost to the Tigers at the Claremont Showground last Saturday to see them drop out of the top five.

Subiaco looks set to recall the leader in the Bernie Naylor Medal race Shane Yarran after he spent a week in the reserves last Saturday against South Fremantle where he kicked three goals from 14 possessions, seven marks and five entries inside the forward 50.

Reece Blechynden had 18 possessions in the reserves last Saturday for Subiaco, Chris Bryan 11 disposals and four tackles, Dylan Elliott four and Declan Jackson 13 to go with seven marks to see all four come into calculations to take on Swan Districts on Saturday at Steel Blue Oval.

With defenders Scott Worthington and Hayden Kennedy going out of the Lions side, that leaves fellow backmen Elliott and Jackson as their most likely replacements.

Premiership full-forward Matt Boland has been named in the team as well despite going off during the first quarter last Saturday in the win over South Fremantle and not reappearing.

SOUTH FREMANTLE (8-9, 7th) v PEEL THUNDER (10-6, 3rd) – FREMANTLE OVAL, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 
Broadcast – 720 ABC Perth

South Fremantle's fading finals hopes go on the line on Saturday against Peel at Fremantle Oval with the Thunder already looking safe in the top five, and looking to make a step towards earning a home final.

South Fremantle has now lost its last two games against East Perth and Subiaco since beating East Fremantle to now fall outside of the top five, and with a poor percentage, the Bulldogs will likely need to win their remaining three matches to remain a chance to play finals.

South Fremantle is currently just percentage behind the fifth place Claremont but with a bye to come next week, the Bulldogs only have three games to go so beating Peel this Saturday, West Perth in Round 22 and then the Thunder again in Round 23 will be needed if finals are to eventuate.

However, the task ahead on Saturday against Peel won't be an easy one with the Thunder fresh off the bye last week on the back of three straight wins against East Fremantle, Claremont and Swan Districts.

The Thunder are shooting for their second ever four-game winning streak now on Saturday and given they already sit safe in third position with a 10-6 record, they could finish the round in second position with a win and that would put them in prime position for a home final to start their first ever finals campaign in just over a month's time.

South Fremantle have played Peel just the once so far this season but now Saturday's clash will be the first of two between the sides over the last four weeks of the 2015 campaign.

The first meeting was a cold and wet day at Fremantle Oval, and proved to be a day to forget for South Fremantle with Peel playing a more disciplined and committed brand of football, and coming away with the 12.13 (85) to 5.11 (41) victory.

South Fremantle has some mixed news at selection with Craig White going out of the team with a shoulder injury that he suffered in the final minutes of last Saturday's loss to Subiaco at Medibank Stadium.

That sees him join Blayne Wilson on the sidelines with a shoulder injury but captain Ryan Cook will return after missing last week's clash with the Lions with his own shoulder complaint.

Zac Strom put in a good performance in the ruck in the reserves last Saturday and looks likely to return to the league side on Saturday, but that will be as defender as South Fremantle tries to cover Peel's tall forwards Matt Taberner, Craig Moller, Sean Hurley and potentially Jack Hannath and/or Zac Clarke.

James Laurino has been banging down the door for his first league appearance since Round 24, 2013 and after missing most of 2014 with a knee reconstruction.

The 22-year-old hard running midfielder had another 35 possessions, seven tackles and six inside-50 entries in the reserves last week against Subiaco to be right in the mix to take on Peel on Saturday.

Tim Stewart is also in terrific form in the midfield in the reserves team that's clear on top of the ladder and another 31 possessions last week sees the 20-year-old from Katanning a strong prospect to make his league debut on Saturday against Peel at Fremantle Oval.

Dual Bernie Naylor Medal winner Ben Saunders is also set to play his second consecutive game in the reserves on return from a hamstring injury.

With Lachie Weller having made his AFL debut at Fremantle last week, Connor Blakely a chance to make his debut this week against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium and with Zac Dawson and Zac Clarke in the mix to play with the Dockers as well, there's a chance all four will go out of the Peel side that beat Swan Districts two weeks ago to the one that lines up on Saturday against South Fremantle.

However, if any of those four miss out on selection to play with the Dockers against the Saints then there is still the chance that they line up for the Thunder against the Bulldogs at Fremantle Oval.

Tendai Mzungu has also been named out of the Peel team for Saturday but there are some strong inclusions led by key forward Matt Taberner who will provide the Thunder with a strong focal point in attack, and he will also be desperate to push his case forward for an AFL call up with a big game.

Max Duffy will also return from injury to line up with Peel while Laine Wilkins, Brennan Gillam, Dylan Winton, Mitch Gill, Kieran May and Eddie Dann all come into the mix to line-up for the Thunder as well against South Fremantle at Fremantle Oval.

EAST FREMANTLE (5-11, 8th) v WEST PERTH (10-6, 2nd) – ATOM STADIUM, SATURDAY 2.15PM
Selected teams 
 
West Perth's second position goes on the line as the Falcons head to ATOM Stadium on Saturday facing an East Fremantle team desperate to find some positives after a horror second half of the 2015 WAFL season.

West Perth is all but guaranteed of playing finals football in 2015 currently sitting in second position on the ladder with a 10-6 record, but last Sunday's nail-biting loss to East Perth did see the Falcons miss an opportunity to be more secure in that spot.

With the second placed team earning a home final in the first week of the new look finals set up, it's a highly sought after position with Subiaco having already locked away the minor premiership but West Perth could slip down the ladder with a loss to East Fremantle on Saturday.

The Falcons could potentially fall to fourth position with a loss to the Sharks and if Peel Thunder and East Perth both win their matches on Saturday as well, but a win could see them a game clear if it happens that the Thunder go down to South Fremantle.

East Fremantle, meanwhile, is just desperate to try and find some positives to take out of a 2015 season that has quickly turned into a nightmare.

The Sharks came into the season rightfully expecting to go well after narrowly missing the grand final last year, and they started well winning five of their first seven games of 2015.

However, East Fremantle has lost its last nine games since including against Perth last Saturday at Lathlain Park with the Sharks remaining winless under new coach Brad Dodd since he replaced Steve Malaxos.

West Perth and East Fremantle have played just each other just the once this season and now Saturday's clash will be their second and last meeting of 2015.

Back in Round 9 at HBF Arena, it was West Perth who was on top for most of the afternoon and then kicked five goals to three in the last quarter to end up beating East Fremantle by 32 points.

East Fremantle is desperate to find a combination that could end its horror nine-game losing streak and as a result Barry Barone and Jayden Schofield go out of the team to take on West Perth from the one that lost to Perth last Saturday.

Brandon Ellis, Sean Henson, Adrian Ricciardello, Jake Schleicher and Andrew Stokes are the East Fremantle in the mix to come back into the league side to take on the Falcons.

Brock O'Brien desperately needs some help up forward and Ellis looks to be the best chance of providing that after kicking four goals in the reserves last week while Ricciardello has proven himself capable of playing at both ends of the ground.

Sean Henson was dropped to the reserves last week and took it well picking up 30 possessions while Schleicher had another 25 disposals and Stokes could come in and provide Rob Young and Jack Fletcher some support in the ruck.

West Perth has some mixed news at selection with the return of premiership players Kody Manning and Steve Potente, and key players Luke Meadows and Kris Shannon, but also losing another premiership player, versatile key position big man Nick Rodda.

Rodda was in terrific form last week in the loss to East Perth at both ends of the ground, but he hurt his shoulder late in the contest and as a result is unavailable to take on East Fremantle on Saturday.

However, Manning, Potente, Shannon and Meadows are all important inclusions for West Perth and all of them strengthen the forward-line to provide some more support for Michael Lourey, Matt Fowler, Matthew Johnson and Corey Chalmers.

Tim Sutherland remains in contention to make his league debut and with Rodda going out of the team, who could come in to both support Marcus Adams and Tyler Keitel in defence, and Chris Keunen in the ruck.

Dean Munns is also a chance to become another West Perth debutant this season to provide some extra grunt in the midfield while last week's debutant Callum Papertalk as well as Brayden Antonio join Rodda out of the team to take on the Sharks on Saturday.