R3 League Wrap Up with Jacob Landsmeer thanks to The Left Bank

East Fremantle has recorded a crushing win against West Coast, defeating the Eagles by 108 points at Mineral Resources Park on Sunday. 

Cody Leggett marked his return to senior WAFL football with five majors, playing his first game since June 2022 after a serious hamstring injury.

The Sharks had ten individual goalkickers in all on their way to a 25.11 (161) to 8.5 (53) triumph. 

Bill Monghan’s men were the heaviest of favourites heading in to the clash, the Eagles with only two AFL listed players in Callum Jamieson and Harry Barnett, former premiership player Will Schofield coming out of retirement to help give the depleted Eagles some much needed experience.

The Sharks started well through Josh Schoenfeld, the former Gold Coast Sun with the first two goals of the contest as the visitors run and overlap troubled the Eagles. 

Austin Ball marked his debut by kicking a major with his first kick in Sharks colours, the former Sydney Swans academy player kicking the Sharks fourth goal. 

There were seven in all in the first term as the blue and whites dominated the contest, Dillon O’Reilly an imposing presence inside 50 while Leggett looked impressive after a hamstring tendon injury ruined his 2022 campaign.

It was more of the same in the second term, Leggett with the first two majors of the quarter before some tenacity from 50th gamer Milan Murdock got him on the scoreboard. 

Leggett had four in the first half as the lead pushed out beyond 10 goals by half time, Ball with three himself in a terrific debut showing.

The lead stood at 84 points at the half, the only question remaining in the game how significant the margin would be in the Sharks favour come the final siren. 

The Eagles had the better of the third term to stymie the East Fremantle goal scoring spree, Leggett booting his fifth major just before three quarter time to give the visitors a 69 point advantage with a quarter to play.

The goals came with more frequency in the last, Alex Montauban popping up with a brace of goals to take his tally to four and push the margin in to three figures.

The final margin was a crushing 108 point win to the visitors, the Eagles fighting gallantly against a far superior opponent. 

East Fremantle Football Operations Manager Brad Dodd was pleased with the side’s most complete performance to date this season. 

“It was a fairly clinical performance over the four quarters,” Dodd said. 

“The Eagles lifted their work rate around the ball in the third term, but our boys lifted again in warm conditions in the last. 

We’re really happy with our performance today to back up the win over Swans last week.”

Tom Joyce (30 disposals) won the Wrightson Medal as the club’s best player afield in the Anzac Rouns, an award named after brothers Roy and Arthur Wrightson who played for East Fremantle before killed in action in the early 1900’s. 

Midfield trio Joyce, Kyle Baskerville (34 disposals) and Milan Murdock (33) nearly shared 100 disposals between them, Leggett, Montauban and Ball sharing 12 majors on a productive day inside 50 for the Sharks forwards. 

20 year old Ball showed encouraging signs in his debut match, Dodd impressed by the young forward.

“We were pleased to have him with us having come over from Sydney and the Swans academy,” Dodd said. 

“He looked really lively and hit the scoreboard. He has a bright future.” 

The win moves East Fremantle in to the top five, sitting in third spot ahead of a clash with Perth at the WACA next Saturday.