A pair of young West Coast-listed defenders stood out as shining lights in an otherwise dismal display by East Perth at the weekend.

Third-year Eagle Tom Barrass and 2015 draftee Tom Cole attempted to limit the damage as the Royals went down to Claremont 5.4 (34) to 16.14 (110) at Medibank Stadium on Saturday.

Fullback Barrass used his big frame and footy nous to negate countless Tigers' incursions into East Perth’s defensive 50m, executing 19 spoils while accumulating 15 disposals of his own.

Cole, debuting for the Royals, showed composure throughout the match and utilised his elusive side-step to avoid Claremont’s would-be tacklers and get the Royals on the front foot from defence.

Jack Redden also performed admirably in the black and blue.

Adam Simpson made it known ahead of the WAFL opener that Redden needed to perform agaisnt the Tigers to be considered for round one selection and the experienced midfielder didn’t disappoint with a 20 disposal, five mark, five tackle and one goal outing for East Perth.

Mark Hutchings and Brant Colledge also got their hands on the football more than most, both accumulating 19 disposals, while Kane Lucas, Fraser McInnes and Luke Partington each got the ball moving 17 times.

First-year forward Matthew Allen played well for the Royals’ reserves, booting two goals and racking up 13 disposals, and Corey Adamson put in another workman-like display, winning the ball 26 times and executing four tackles.

The pair helped East Perth’s second team to a comfortable 11.9 (75) to 7.6 (48) win over the Tigers.