Valiant Sharks fall short

East Fremantle put up a brave effort on Saturday against a dominant Subiaco side, but the boys fell short, going down by 31-points, a score not quite reflective of the match.  

The Sharks provided an unexpectedly tight contest that saw them hit the lead during the third quarter in the wet weather. But injury sidelined Brock O’Brien and George Hampson making it hard for the boys to hold on.

It was a slow start for both teams who battled the rain; Subiaco was able to kick the only goal of the first term taking a 9-point lead into the quarter time break.

The Sharks got off to a good start in the second, with Cam Symonds booting a goal within the first minute of the quarter. Subiaco quickly took control of the game, kicking the next 5 majors but East Fremantle managed a goal from Brock O’Brien. It was a hot contest between the top and bottom teams, taking 5 minuts before Matthew Watson came through with a goal, to narrow the margin to 24 points at half time.

Subi may have got the first goal of the third term, but the rest of the quarter belonged to the Sharks. An Alex Howson goal got the ball rolling with Andrew Stephen kicking one straight after. Debutant Zac McCarrey kicked a beauty on the run, igniting the boys. Howson added another one to the board, bring the margin to 4 points in favour of the home team. Upon his return to the league side, defender Josh Cuneo kicked a booming running goal from the 50m line, with possibly one of the competitions best celebrations. The Sharks 2-point lead was short lived, with the determined Lions kicking consecutive goals. A late major from Jayden Schofield put East Fremantle within 4 points going into the final break.

Cam Symonds kicked the first goal of the fourth term to tie up the game. The Lions were then quick to respond with 2 majors. A fantastic passage of play by the Sharks helped George Hampson kick a soccer goal, getting them back within 5 points. With a few East Fremantle boys coming off with injury the Sharks struggled against a final surge from Subi kicking 3 late goals.

Jayden Schofield put in a tremendous running performance for East Fremantle finishing the game with 32 possessions, seven tackles, six marks and a goal.

His partner in crime Ryan Lester-Smith also had 22 disposals, six marks and five tackles while Josh Cuneo impressed on return to the league side with 15 possessions and a goal.

Jonathon Marsh racked up another 28 disposals for the Sharks while George Hampson also had 23 disposals, eight tackles and a goal against the team he won a premiership with in 2014.

Watson did a power of work in the ruck for East Fremantle with 23 possessions, seven marks and 26 hit outs.

Jesse Crichton made things hard for ball magnet Liam Ryan, holding him to 10 disposals.

Jye Clements played an important role throughout the midfield in his first league game, and even helped to set up a goal for the Sharks.