They might have been given the honour of playing on good Friday, but East Perth’s season opening performance was anything but good against a rampant Subiaco outfit.
The Royals suffered one of its heaviest defeats in recent history, going down to the Lions by 118 points at Leederville Oval.
Signs were ominous from the outset; Subiaco kicked the first three goals of the game before Shayne Hille booted East Perth’s first major of the year with a clever snap from 20m directly in front.
But Hille’s inspiring piece of play did little to stifle Subiaco’s momentum, as the home team kicked away to a six-goal lead at quarter time.
The Royals appeared to find their feet in the second term, and goals to Julian Ameduri and Tom Cole, plus two six-pointers from ruckman Fraser McInnes, got the visiting team back into the contest.
However, Subiaco regained control of the match in the latter stages of the term – in part due to its midfield dominance – and stretched its lead to 59 points at half-time.
The home side showed no signs of slowing down after the break, booting the first three goals of the penultimate term to kick further ahead.
East Perth showed glimpses of their potential throughout the remainder of the contest, but Subiaco’s class prevailed as they streaked to a dominant 29.14 (188) to 10.10 (70) victory.
The performance of first-year Eagle Jarrod Brander was a silver lining in an otherwise dark day for the black and blue army.
West Coast’s first selection in the 2017 NAB AFL Draft clunked countless big marks and was one of few Royals to trouble the Lions’ steadfast defence.
He finished the contest with 12 disposals, seven marks and a goal.
Senior players Mark Hutchings and Fraser McInnes were also serviceable against Subiaco.
The dogged midfielder collected a game-high 29 disposals, while McInnes won 36 hitouts to go with his 21 possessions, seven marks and two goals.
SUBIACO 7.6 16.7 22.11 29.14 188
EAST PERTH 2.0 7.2 8.5 10.10 70
GOALS – SUBIACO: Stevenson 7; Waters 5; Borchet, Sokol 3; Perkins, Halligan, Delahunty 2; Walters, Newton, Miller, Litherland, Horsley.
EAST PERTH: Hille, McInnes 2; Brander, Cole, Maginness, Partington, Wellingham, Ameduri.
