The WAFL Eagles fell short to Subiaco in a 19-point defeat at Mineral Resources Park under Friday night lights.

While it was a competitive contest, both sides struggled to make the most of their chances in front of goal with the Lions taking the four points in the 13.14 (92) to 9.19 (73) win.

Senior coach Kyal Horsley said while there were positives in the second half, the first half wasn’t up to standard.  

“Our lack of ability to stop Subiaco’s ball movement or create turnovers meant that the Lions were able to play a front half game and put us under enormous pressure, which inevitability turned into scores,” Horsley said.

“Full credit to Subiaco, the speed they moved the ball really challenged us and exposed our defensive breakdowns and lapses, and realistically we were lucky to still be in the game at half time.

“The second half was better, we controlled field position which was built off the back of sharp defence and our ability to create front half turnovers and stoppages.

“As a group we own the first half and now have a clear understanding of what our best looks like and the effort that’s required to deliver it”.

Top Performers

Tyler Brockman

Tyler played as a forward in the first half and struggled with supply as we didn’t use the ball well going forward and we didn’t give the forwards any chance to apply pressure with our poor team defence. We moved Tyler inside in the second half and his impact was profound, he had eight clearances, eight inside 50’s, three score assists and two shots at goal.

James Ewing

James played as a key back and really stood out all game with his football IQ. He saved the day for us on numerous occasions and really kept us in the game in the first half with his positioning and ability to cover some of our poor breakdowns up the field.

Matt Flynn

Flynny had another dominate game, which was no surprise with the effort he puts into his game and his attitude around the club and on game day. He’s doing all he can to help the team win and in turn, doing all he can to get back into the AFL team.

AFL Listed Players:

Coen Livingston

Coen provided a big target for us and while he didn’t have the statistical game he had the week before, he competed hard and didn’t get out marked all game. This gave our smalls real predictability and allowed them to go to work at the feet.

Harry Barnett

Harry had a game of two halves, he was disappointed with his first half but to his credit he fought his way out of it and had a much better second half. It’s always pleasing as a coach to see players fight their way through adversity and have the resilience to turn things around.

Jack Petruccelle

Petch had an ‘almost’ day, he kicked one of the goals of the year where we saw him unleash his electric pace, but he also left a few out there. The exciting thing about his game at the moment is his ability to win contest in the front half and get multiple shots at goal per game.

Harvey Johnston

Harvey showed his versatility, we moved him around within game to give us some drive and run from halfback. He had some highlight moments with ball in hand but lacked consistency which is usually one of his strong points and something he works extremely hard on.

Jobe Shannahan

Strong game from Jobe, he has been working hard on his forward craft and his ability to get separation from his opponent, and he is starting to see the fruits of his labour, getting five shots at goal and kicking three.

Loch Rawlinson

Loch just had one of those games, I have no doubt he will respond, he was clearly one of our best players over the pre-season. He has put in an enormous summer and worked hard and he will get the rewards.

Lucca Grego  

Lucca played a well-rounded game, he was good on the inside with 13 contested possessions, six clearances and five tackles. He also found the football on the outside where he could show his poise with ball in hand, creating a game-leading five score assists, and is building his game as a mid.

Tim Kelly  

Tim’s attitude was outstanding and it’s no coincidence that Lucca had his best game with TK inside helping him and giving him ‘in the moment’ coaching. He dealt with a lot of attention but worked through it well and had a big impact. It was pleasing to see the way he covered the ground, and his ability to get from contest to contest has been a feature of his game for a long time.

Malakai Champion

We are seeing glimpses of Malakai’s best which is exciting. With the work he’s been able to put in over a sustained period I know he is close to putting it together and taking a game apart. He has all the tools and is figuring out how it fits into our system.

Noah Long  

It was Longy’s WAFL debut, despite having already played 30 AFL games, which is a testament to the impact he’s had since walking into the club. Nothing to fault in his game, his attitude was outstanding, he embraced all roles we put him in and performed them all well and with a team-first mindset.

Rhett Bazzo

Rhett defended as well as he could in the first half with the lack of pressure up the field. I thought his ability to scrap and create a contest was impressive, in the second half his leadership really came out and was a big part of the reason we were able to lock the ball in our front half.